Common cuckoo
Cuculus canorus Linnaeus, 1758
The common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus), also called the cuckoo or European cuckoo, is a small bird in the family Cuculidae and the order Cuculiformes. Adults weigh 111.4 g, with reported values from 106 g to 117 g, and the wingspan is 58 cm.
Quick facts about the common cuckoo
It is a migratory, perching invertivore of forest habitat whose main foods are caterpillar, chick, egg as food and insect. The IUCN Red List assesses the common cuckoo as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.
- Weight
- 106 g – 117 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Wingspan
- 58 cmsrc for Wingspan
- Lifespan
- 12.9 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Invertivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- caterpillar, chick, egg as food, insectsrc for Main food
- Habitat
- forestsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 12.5 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 9.2src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 12 monthssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 12src for Litters or clutches a year
- Reproduction
- Eggssrc for Reproduction
- Lifestyle
- Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Migratorysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
How big is the common cuckoo?
Photos of the common cuckoo
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Where does the common cuckoo live?
Not recorded
What is the common cuckoo?
The cuckoo, common cuckoo, European cuckoo or Eurasian cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, Cuculiformes, which includes the roadrunners, the anis and the coucals.
This species is a widespread summer migrant to Europe and Asia, and winters in Africa. It is a brood parasite, which means it lays eggs in the nests of other bird species, particularly of dunnocks, meadow pipits, and reed warblers. Although its eggs are larger than those of its hosts, the eggs in each type of host nest resemble the host's eggs. The adult too is a mimic, in its case of the sparrowhawk; since that species is a predator, the mimicry gives the female time to lay her eggs without being attacked.
From the Wikipedia article “Common cuckoo” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Common_cuckoo&oldid=1381841563), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
What does the common cuckoo sound like?
Is the common cuckoo endangered?
The common cuckoo is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the common cuckoo classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderCuculiformes
- familyCuculidae
- genusCuculus
- SpeciesCuculus canorus Linnaeus, 1758
Synonyms Cuculus canorus kleinschmidti, Cuculus rufus
Other names and names in other languages (137)
- CuckooEnglish
- European cuckooEnglish
- Europese KoekoekAfrikaans
- الوقواقArabic
- وقواق اعتياديArabic
- وقواق شائعArabic
- MaykoñoMapuche
- cucuAsturian
- cuquielluAsturian
- marmielluAsturian
- pecúAsturian
- terézanuAsturian
- ГагуAvaric
- Ququ quşuAzerbaijani
- Звычайная зязюляBelarusian
- Зязюля (звычайная)Belarusian
- Обикновена кукувицаBulgarian
- KoukougBreton
- Koukoug-EuraziaBreton
- CucutCatalan
- cucut comúCatalan
- OttyoqChechen
- КукуMari
- Ахаль куккукChuvash
- kukačka obecnáCzech
- KukówkaKashubian
- cogWelsh
- CogauWelsh
- gøgDanish
- GauchGerman
- GutzgauchGerman
- KuckuckGerman
- KukawaLower Sorbian
- ΚούκοςGreek
- Ευρωπαϊκός ΚούκοςGreek
- (Ευρωπαϊκός) ΚούκοςGreek
- Griza kukoloEsperanto
- ordinara kukoloEsperanto
- Cuco comúnSpanish
- käguEstonian
- KukuBasque
- کوکوی معمولیPersian
- käkiFinnish
- GeykurFaroese
- Coucou grisFrench
- KukütjNorthern Frisian
- cuachScottish Gaelic
- cuthagScottish Gaelic
- cuthaganScottish Gaelic
- Cuco vulgarGalician
- CooagManx
- JerutiGuarani
- קוקיה אירופיתHebrew
- קוקיה אירופאיתHebrew
- קוקייה אירופיתHebrew
- KokulaUpper Sorbian
- kakukkHungarian
- Սովորական կկուArmenian
- Kangkok erasiaIndonesian
- KukuloIdo
- GaukurIcelandic
- CuculoItalian
- カッコウJapanese
- გუგულიGeorgian
- КӀыгуугуKabardian
- Кööкkjh
- Кәдімгі кєкекKazakh
- Кәдімгі көкекKazakh
- 뻐꾸기Korean
- PepûkKurdish
- CokCornish
- Mukukukwn
- GuckuckLuxembourgish
- Ччиккуlbe
- кукупІLezghian
- Къукъу лифLezghian
- KegLivonian
- Cuchlld
- gegutėLithuanian
- paprastoji gegutėLithuanian
- dzeguzeLatvian
- кукавицаMacedonian
- കുക്കൂ കുയിൽMalayalam
- Daqquqa kaħlaMaltese
- ХөхөөMongolian
- पावशाMarathi
- КукоErzya
- TurturaNeapolitan
- gjøkNorwegian Bokmål
- KukukLow German
- koekoekDutch
- gaukNorwegian Nynorsk
- Coucounrm
- CoguolOccitan
- CocouPicard
- kukułkaPolish
- kukułka (zwyczajna)Polish
- CocoPiedmontese
- cucoPortuguese
- cuco-canoroPortuguese
- cuco-cinzentoPortuguese
- ChuhuriashkaRomany
- cucRomanian
- TurturicaRomanian
- КукушкаRussian
- обыкновенная кукушкаRussian
- КэҕэYakut
- CuccuSicilian
- GowkScots
- GiehkaNorthern Sami
- KukačkaSlovak
- kukučka obyčajnáSlovak
- kukavicaSlovenian
- navadna kukavicaSlovenian
- CeelaljoogSomali
- kukjaAlbanian
- qyqjaAlbanian
- Obična kukavicaSerbian
- Обична кукавицаSerbian
- Kukavica - кукавицаSerbian
- CucchedduSardinian
- KukuukSaterland Frisian
- gökSwedish
- Kekeo wa UlayaSwahili
- นกคัคคูพันธุ์ยุโรปThai
- gugukTurkish
- ХекTuvinian
- КикыUdmurt
- ЗозуляUkrainian
- зозуля звичайнаUkrainian
- Зозуля (звичайна)Ukrainian
- CucùVenetian
- KägiVeps
- KägoVõro
- 郭公Chinese
- 大杜鵑Chinese
- 大杜鹃Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List
Relatives of the common cuckoo
Other species in the same genus Cuculus.
Lesser cuckoo
Cuculus poliocephalus
Oriental cuckoo
Cuculus saturatus
Indian cuckoo
Cuculus micropterus
African cuckoo
Cuculus gularis
Oriental cuckoo
Cuculus optatus
Black cuckoo
Cuculus clamosus
CompareCommon cuckoo vs Lesser cuckooCommon cuckoo vs Oriental cuckooCommon cuckoo vs Indian cuckooCommon cuckoo vs African cuckoo
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the common cuckoo?
The common cuckoo is a bird in the family Cuculidae and the order Cuculiformes. It is classed as small by adult body mass.
How much does a common cuckoo weigh?
An adult common cuckoo weighs 111.4 g, with reported values from 106 g to 117 g. Its wingspan is 58 cm.
What does the common cuckoo eat?
The common cuckoo is an invertivore. Its main foods are caterpillar, chick, egg as food and insect.
Is the common cuckoo endangered?
No. The IUCN Red List assesses it as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.
How long does a common cuckoo live?
The common cuckoo has a lifespan of 12.91 years, with values up to 12.92 years reported.
How many eggs does the common cuckoo lay?
Sources give 9.2 eggs per clutch and 12 clutches per year. Incubation lasts 12.5 days.
Does the common cuckoo migrate?
Yes, the common cuckoo is migratory. Its geographic range covers 37,340,000 km².
Who named the common cuckoo?
The common cuckoo, Cuculus canorus, was named by Linnaeus, 1758.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
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Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-cuckoo
“Common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-cuckoo.
@misc{common_cuckoo_2026,
title = {Common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/common-cuckoo},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}