Bird Guide: Land Birds East of the Rockies, from Parrots to Bluebirds

by Chester A. Reed

YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO

387. Coccyzus americanus. 12¼ inches

This species is the most abundant in the southern part of its range, while the Black-bill is the most common in the North. Notice that the lower mandible is yellowish, that the wings are largely rufous, and that the outer tail feathers are black, with broad white tips, these points readily distinguishing this species from the next. The eggs of this species are large and paler colored than the next (1.20 × .90). They breed from the Gulf to southern Canada and winter in Central America.