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Song & Call Comparison
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Song & Call Comparison
Mangrove Cuckoo
Chant
Harsh, penetrating call with raucous quality; loud rough notes carrying through dense forest habitat.
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
Chant
Soft, ventriloquial whistled phrase; clear pure notes given quietly and deceptively from dense tropical thicket.
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Geographic Range & Migration
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Conservation Status Comparison
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Statut de conservation
Least Concern
Mangrove Cuckoo
Least Concern
Lesser Ground-cuckoo
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Identification Tips — How to Tell Them Apart
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How to Tell Them Apart
Mangrove Cuckoo
Plumage
Squirrel Cuckoo (Piaya): rich rufous-brown above; pale buff below; long graduated rufous tail; yellow orbital ring; neotropical
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
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About Each Bird (Descriptions)
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Mangrove Cuckoo (Coccyzus minor) — 28–32 cm. Brown above; buffy-orange wash on breast and belly; yellow lower mandible; long tail with white spots. Inhabits mangroves, tropical hammocks, and scrub from Florida and the Caribbean to northern South America. Non-parasitic. Insectivore feeding on caterpillars and invertebrates.
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.
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Related Comparisons
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More Birds in Family
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