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Song & Call Comparison
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Song & Call Comparison
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
Song
Soft, ventriloquial whistled phrase; clear pure notes given quietly and deceptively from dense tropical thicket.
Channel-billed Cuckoo
Song
Loud, melodic call with musical quality; resonant notes building in pleasant sequence from forest perch.
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Geographic Range & Migration
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Conservation Status Comparison
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Conservation Status
Least Concern
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
Least Concern
Channel-billed Cuckoo
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Identification Tips — How to Tell Them Apart
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How to Tell Them Apart
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
Plumage
Greater Roadrunner: boldly streaked brown above; white-cream below with dark streaks; long tail; shaggy crest; bare facial skin; fast runner
Channel-billed Cuckoo
Plumage
Little Bronze-cuckoo: small; bronze-green above; barred white below; red eye; iridescent green-bronze; Papuan species; tiny size
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About Each Bird (Descriptions)
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Lesser Ground-cuckoo (Morococcyx erythropygus) — 28 cm. Brown above; chestnut rump; whitish underparts; bare blue orbital skin. Inhabits dry and semi-arid scrub from Mexico to Costa Rica. Non-parasitic; builds its own nest in low shrubs. Runs on the ground hunting large insects, lizards, and amphibians. Monotypic genus endemic to Mesoamerica.
Channel-billed Cuckoo (Scythrops novaehollandiae) — 58–65 cm; wingspan to 100 cm. The world's largest cuckoo; pale grey; enormous decurved horn-coloured bill; bare red orbital skin. Migratory; breeds in Australia and New Guinea; winters in Indonesia. Brood parasite targeting currawongs and magpies. Frugivore; disperses wild figs.
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Related Comparisons
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More Birds in Family
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