Cuckoos

[DIDO.1 20,854]

On 13/05/2023 at 14:31, foxdropper said:

Heard them on dartmoor last week ,saw one in flight but the tree out back ours that has one every year has been silent thus far .Pity as it’s a tune  I look forward to .Years ago it was thought the cuckoo and sparrow hawk were one and the same .

They do look similar sometimes.

Heard one in sw Scotland at weekend 

[Greyman 25,242]

1 hour ago, DIDO.1 said:

They do look similar sometimes.

Heard one in sw Scotland at weekend 

It’s a deliberate disguise mate, the host only leaves its nest for very short periods of time so the cuckoo does not get long enough to lay its egg, but by buzzing overhead the silhouette gives the impression of a sparrow hawk which makes the parent bird leave the nest for a slightly longer time which allows the cuckoo time to slip in and lay nothing in nature is accidental we just don’t understand it all

[DIDO.1 20,854]

47 minutes ago, Greyman said:

It’s a deliberate disguise mate, the host only leaves its nest for very short periods of time so the cuckoo does not get long enough to lay its egg, but by buzzing overhead the silhouette gives the impression of a sparrow hawk which makes the parent bird leave the nest for a slightly longer time which allows the cuckoo time to slip in and lay nothing in nature is accidental we just don’t understand it all

Didn't realise that

[foxdropper 17,092]

52 minutes ago, Greyman said:

It’s a deliberate disguise mate, the host only leaves its nest for very short periods of time so the cuckoo does not get long enough to lay its egg, but by buzzing overhead the silhouette gives the impression of a sparrow hawk which makes the parent bird leave the nest for a slightly longer time which allows the cuckoo time to slip in and lay nothing in nature is accidental we just don’t understand it all

Is that just your opinion or proven fact Paul.Interesting theory that .

[Daniel cain 42,853]

3 hours ago, foxdropper said:

Is that just your opinion or proven fact Paul.Interesting theory that .

I was told that myself as a nipper by my grandad..very similar plumage on both birds

[cragman 2,635]

14 hours ago, Greyman said:

It’s a deliberate disguise mate, the host only leaves its nest for very short periods of time so the cuckoo does not get long enough to lay its egg, but by buzzing overhead the silhouette gives the impression of a sparrow hawk which makes the parent bird leave the nest for a slightly longer time which allows the cuckoo time to slip in and lay nothing in nature is accidental we just don’t understand it all

It can take around 8 seconds for the cuckoo to lay her egg. She won’t “buzz “ overhead, but sometimes flies over the moor looking for reactions from the pipits, the idea is to get in and out unseen, although with meadow pipits, that’s a different story as up to 4-5 will attack her as she tries to lay. She’ll watch the host from a hidden vantage point then with a long glide, will land near the nest, find it and lay, or sometimes she will just locate it and check for its suitability as to whether it’s ready for her egg. They’re just starting to lay in pipits nests now

[Greyman 25,242]

It was something I saw on telly many moons ago but it was referring to Reed warblers at the time, but there is more modern research into it 

[cragman 2,635]

1 hour ago, Greyman said:

It was something I saw on telly many moons ago but it was referring to Reed warblers at the time, but there is more modern research into it 

Yes, Reed Warblers can reject eggs whereas meadow pipits seem to accept them even though they’ve seen the female cuckoo laying in their nest. Evolution at work. The pipits need to up their game. Hedge sparrows will accept any coloured egg so are good hosts for the CC. 
 

[waltjnr 5,972]

Heard my first one round here yesterday, didn't see it ,quite a nice bird to look at ,but their habits not so nice ,but it is nature and it works,only when we step in and think we know better is it fckud up ! 

[mole trapper 1,646]

Until two weeks ago I'd not heard one for about 15 years,  unfortunately I had to travel from Cornwall to Glen coe to hear them.

[bell 3,503]

Got a place up the Dales in a quiet place off the beaten track , always plenty of cuckoos and had one on the garden wall last week…. Great to see….sat with the Merlin bird app, had a spotted flycatcher checking out an open fronted box i put up 2 years ago and saw a couple of wheatear chasing around calling across the lane, Merlin picked them up no problem.  

[foxdropper 17,092]

Back in the mists of time when egg collecting was something most lads did ,I found a cuckoos egg in a mistletoe thrushes nest .Left it and sure enough on next visit there was only one large chick .Fork of a sycamore tree .Memories very vivid of it .

[cragman 2,635]

1 hour ago, foxdropper said:

Back in the mists of time when egg collecting was something most lads did ,I found a cuckoos egg in a mistletoe thrushes nest .Left it and sure enough on next visit there was only one large chick .Fork of a sycamore tree .Memories very vivid of it .

A very unusual host to use. The cuckoos egg would have been smaller than the mistle thrushes egg. And the steep sides on the nest…would have been a job to push anything over the side. Probably never had one recorded in such a nest 

[foxdropper 17,092]

8 hours ago, cragman said:

A very unusual host to use. The cuckoos egg would have been smaller than the mistle thrushes egg. And the steep sides on the nest…would have been a job to push anything over the side. Probably never had one recorded in such a nest 

That’s why you don’t listen to statistics mate .

[Greyman 25,242]

10 hours ago, cragman said:

A very unusual host to use. The cuckoos egg would have been smaller than the mistle thrushes egg. And the steep sides on the nest…would have been a job to push anything over the side. Probably never had one recorded in such a nest 

Your talking to the bloke that had the only nesting bramblings in the uk in his back yard as well not just one but two or three pairs also probably never recorded before, bit of a pattern emerging, nice one on your cuckoo knowledge mate you’ve obviously spent a fair bit of time studying them I,m always around water so I guess most of what I,m seeing is based around there relationship with the warbler family, really interesting bird been good to see and here quite a few around me this year