Chrysococcyx lucidus
The Shining Bronze Cuckoo has a very fine, straight pointed beak. It got its name from the color of its plumage which has a rather metallic sheen to it. Face variably vhitish, white below, barred greenish to bronze, throat white or narrowly barred, eye-ring grey, iris grey to brown, bill black, feet dark grey. Juvenile duller, inconspicious barred on flanks, iris grey to pale brown. Voice: Has a very shrill and high pitched whistle. Like those used to call a dog. 'feee, feee, feee---' also a descending 'pee-eer'.
Not Threatened.
The Shining Bronze Cuckoo has a very fine, straight pointed beak. It got its name from the color of its plumage which has a rather metallic sheen to it. Face variably vhitish, white below, barred greenish to bronze, throat white or narrowly barred, eye-ring grey, iris grey to brown, bill black, feet dark grey. Juvenile duller, inconspicious barred on flanks, iris grey to pale brown. Voice: Has a very shrill and high pitched whistle. Like those used to call a dog. 'feee, feee, feee---' also a descending 'pee-eer'.
17 cm, 23 g
Taxonomy:
- Cuculus lucidus J. F. Gmelin, 1788, Queen Charlotte Sound, New Zealand. Asian and Australasian forms of Chrysococcyx sometimes placed in genus Chalcites. Within present species, Australian birds are sometimes recognized as a separate race, plagosus, with wider bill, more white on side of face, no white on forehead, and more brown or bronze (less green) gloss, but even in Western Australia not all individuals are distinct from birds in New Zealand; both bronze-backed and green-backed birds occur in breeding season in both areas, as do birds with and without white forehead spots. Birds on Malekula I, Vanuatu, described as race aeneus, (source: Handbook of the Birds of World)
Subspecies and Distribution:
- * harterti (Mayr, 1932) - Rennell I and Bellona I (S Solomons). * layardi Mathews, 1912 - New Caledonia and Loyalty Is, Vanuatu, Banks Is and Santa Cruz Is. * lucidus (J. F. Gmelin, 1788) - Australia, Tasmania and New Zealand; migrates to New Guinea region, N Melanesia and Lesser Sundas.
Within its range, it usually stays up high in the canopy of rain forests, but can also be seen in some thick and overgrown eucalyptus forest areas in eastern and south-western Australia.
Their main diet consists of insects, such as caterpillars, beetles, flies and ants.
In most cases, Shining Bronze-cuckoos lay their eggs in the nest of other birds, specifically they like wrens, thorn bills, honey eaters (White-eared Honeyeaters), and flycatchers. The eggs are long and plain green to brown in color - often matching the colors of the eggs laid by their preferred host birds. The unsuspecting hosts will incubate the eggs and raise the young as their own. Young cuckoos will often push any eggs or chicks of the host birds out of the nest to eliminate any competition for food. They will even do so when they are reared by their true parents. The young cuckoo hatches without feathers and fledges at around 2 to 3 weeks. The foster parents continue to feed the cuckoo for several weeks after the young have left the nest.