Cuckoo: nest, call, young bird, pictures & Co.

How do you recognize a cuckoo fledgling?

Young cuckoos have even more striking patterns than their parents. Their entire plumage is criss-crossed by strong, dark transverse bands. The juveniles also have brown spots on their backs and elytra and a conspicuous white spot can be seen on the juveniles' necks.

What habitat does the cuckoo prefer?

The cuckoo has a wide range of habitats. It occurs in sparse forests, but also in cultural landscapes that have structures such as hedges or other tall vegetation. Only very dense forests are avoided. And of course, the occurrence of the cuckoo depends on the distribution of its host species.

What do cuckoo eggs look like?

This question is not that easy to answer. Because female cuckoos can match the color of their eggs to those of the host species in order to camouflage them in the foreign clutch. Different females have different preferences for which bird species to parasitize, and they pass their adaptation to that bird species on to their daughters. You can still recognize a cuckoo egg by its size, because it is usually a little larger than the host eggs. The cuckoo never builds its own nest, but only uses those of other bird species. Female cuckoos lay about ten eggs per year, each of which is placed in a different, foreign nest.

When is the breeding season of the cuckoo?

Since the cuckoo doesn't incubate its own eggs, it basically hasno own breeding season. The timing of oviposition depends on the oviposition of the host bird species and occurs shortly after or even during it. Due to its short incubation period of around twelve days, the cuckoo child usually hatches before the offspring of the host bird. This allows him to clear the other eggs out of the nest before they hatch, so the alien baby birds cannot compete for food. Because of its size, the young cuckoo needs all the food that the parents bring to the nest for itself.

Note: As dramatic as the cuckoo's behavior sounds, it has no negative impact on host bird populations. Even in species that are comparatively often parasitized by the cuckoo, the proportion of "hijacked" nests is less than one percent. However, the cuckoo itself has gained a decisive advantage with its behavior, because it saves a lot of work. He can then invest the energy gained in this way, for example, in his long journeys.

Where does the cuckoo spend the winter?

The cuckoo is a migratory bird that spends its winters in the tropical savannas of Africa. It is a long-distance migrant, leaving its breeding area early in the year and only returning relatively late. German cuckoos, for example, are already moving south in August and will not be visiting us again until the end of May.

Support the cuckoo in the garden: This is how it works

Due to the monotony of the landscape and the increasing loss of insects and other small animals, the cuckoo is gradually being deprived of its livelihood and the population has been declining sharply for several years. Find out how you can support the magnificent bird here.

What do cuckoos eat?

Cuckoos feed exclusively on animal food. They hunt insects, spiders, worms and other small animals. Sometimes even small frogs and other amphibians are eaten. Vegetable food, on the other hand, is not on the cuckoo's menu. That's why you can't lure him with classic bird seed.

If you still want to support the cuckoo in your own garden, you can make a big difference by designing an insect-friendly garden. For example, by creating a flower meadow, you can create a wonderful habitat for numerous insects and other small garden dwellers, which attract many garden birds and the cuckoocan do kindly. You can do this quickly and easily, for example with our Plantura beneficial insect magnet, which will conjure up a paradise of native wildflowers in no time at all, bringing life to your garden from May to September.

How can you support cuckoos?

It's not just the lack of food and habitat that bothers the cuckoo. Climate change could also soon have a very negative impact on populations. With spring starting earlier and earlier, the start of breeding for many bird species is also being postponed. However, since the cuckoo has to travel the long distance from its winter quarters, it may soon arrive too late and miss the start of breeding on its host birds. A lot of research is currently being done on this topic.

Another species of bird that is mainly known for its distinctive song is the chiffchaff. Get to know this garden bird a little better in our detailed portrait of the species.