Channel-billed Cuckoo
Scythrops novaehollandiae
Silhouette: Nicolas Huet le Jeune and Jean-Gabriel Prêtre (vectorized by T. Michael Keesey) · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderCuculiformes (Cuckoos)
- FamilyCuculidae (Cuckoos)
- GenusScythrops
- SpeciesScythrops novaehollandiae (Channel-billed Cuckoo)
About the Channel-billed Cuckoo
The channel-billed cuckoo (Scythrops novaehollandiae) is a species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae. It is monotypic within the genus Scythrops. The species is the largest brood parasite in the world, and the largest cuckoo.
It is found in Australia, New Guinea and Indonesia; additionally, it is vagrant in New Caledonia and New Zealand. The species is migratory over part of its range. There are three subspecies, one migratory, the other two resident. The species is listed as least concern by the IUCN.
Captain Arthur Phillip wrote of this (at the time) mysterious bird—calling it the 'psittaceous hornbill'—in his 1789 work The voyage of Governor Phillip to Botany Bay, consulting with ornithologist John Latham and deliberating that it had features of a parrot, hornbill or toucan, though conceding there were no toucans in the region. He gave it the name Scythrops novaehollandiae in 1790. Its generic name is derived from the Ancient Greek skuthro-/σκυθρο- 'angry' or 'sullen', and ops/ωψ 'face', 'eye' or 'countenance'. The specific epithet novaehollandiae means of New Holland, hence Australian. John White, the surgeon-general of the First Fleet to New South Wales, wrote... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Channel-billed Cuckoo in Kakadu National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Kakadu National Park
Pheasant Coucal
Centropus phasianinus
Rusty-breasted Cuckoo
Cacomantis variolosus
Little Bronze Cuckoo
Chrysococcyx minutillus
Black-Eared Cuckoo
Chrysococcyx osculans
Pacific Koel
Eudynamys orientalis
Horsfield's Bronze Cuckoo
Chrysococcyx basalis
Pallid Cuckoo
Cuculus pallidus
Oriental Cuckoo
Cuculus optatus
Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Litchfield National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Raja Ampat | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 4 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Tangkoko Nature Reserve | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 8 | Nitmiluk National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 11 | Noosa National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 12 | Booderee National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 13 | Kosciuszko National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Channel-billed Cuckoo in Kakadu National Park?
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Channel-billed Cuckoo sighting in Kakadu National Park, based on 217 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Channel-billed Cuckoo in Kakadu National Park?
March has the highest sighting rate for Channel-billed Cuckoo in Kakadu National Park in our monthly data.