Yellow-billed Cuckoo

Coccyzus americanus

Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderCuculiformes (Cuckoos)
FamilyCuculidae (Cuckoos)
GenusCoccyzus (Coccyzus Cuckoos)
SpeciesCoccyzus americanus (Yellow-billed Cuckoo)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Main Ridge Forest Reserve

2 Verified sightings at Main Ridge Forest Reserve From 2019 to 2026

3,871 Verified sightings across all 56 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Yellow-billed Cuckoo

The yellow-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus) is a member of the cuckoo family. Common folk names for this bird in the southern United States are rain crow and storm crow. These likely refer to the bird's habit of calling on hot days, often presaging rain showers or thunderstorms. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek kokkuzo, which means to call like a common cuckoo, and americanus means "of America".

The yellow-billed cuckoo was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae. He placed it with all the other cuckoos in the genus Cuculus and coined the binomial name Cuculus americanus. Linnaeus based his description on the "Cuckow of Carolina" that had been described and illustrated in 1729–1732 by the English naturalist Mark Catesby in his The Natural History of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands. The yellow-billed cuckoo is now placed with 12 other species in the genus Coccyzus that was introduced in 1816 by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek kokkuzō meaning "to cry cuckoo". The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised. Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Main Ridge Forest Reserve

Crotophaga ani

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Global Distribution

Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Congaree National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~30%
2	Shenandoah National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~10%
3	Point Pelee National Park	🇨🇦 Canada	~10%
4	El Impenetrable National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	<5%
5	Parque Natural Metropolitano	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
6	Big Cypress National Preserve	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
7	Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
8	Soberanía National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
9	Everglades National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
10	Henri Pittier National Park	🇻🇪 Venezuela	<5%
11	Calakmul Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
12	Pico Bonito National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	<5%
13	Los Haitises National Park	🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	<5%
14	Tayrona National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
15	Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
16	Tortuguero National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
17	Darién National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
18	Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
19	Madidi National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	<5%
20	Bastimentos Island National Marine Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
21	Celestún Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
22	Chingaza National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
23	La Amistad International Park (Panama)	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
24	Ciénaga de Zapata	🇨🇺 Cuba	<5%
25	Acadia National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
26	Tambopata National Reserve	🇵🇪 Peru	<5%
27	Braulio Carrillo National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
28	Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
29	Saguaro National Park	🇺🇸 United States	<5%
30	Volcán Barú National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	Insufficient data
31	Amboró National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	Insufficient data
32	Biotopo Cerro Cahuí	🇬🇹 Guatemala	Insufficient data
33	Amacayacu National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	Insufficient data
34	Serra da Canastra National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
35	Cahuita National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
36	Machalilla National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	Insufficient data
37	Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
38	Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
39	Cañón del Sumidero National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
40	Main Ridge Forest Reserve	🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago	Insufficient data
41	Tikal National Park	🇬🇹 Guatemala	Insufficient data
42	Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	Insufficient data
43	Lago de Yojoa	🇭🇳 Honduras	Insufficient data
44	Palo Verde National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
45	Ostional Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
46	Piedras Blancas National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
47	Puracé National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	Insufficient data
48	Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
49	Iguazú National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	Insufficient data
50	Los Nevados National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	Insufficient data
51	Chirripó National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
52	Carara National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
53	Corcovado National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
54	Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
55	Iguaçu National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
56	Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data

← Back to Main Ridge Forest Reserve