. Birds of America;. Birds -- North America. I30 BIRDS OF AMERICA cuckoo-clock, its performance does not even re- motely suggest the American Cuckoo's song which, in fact, is simply a series of guttural cliitcks and clucks, most unbird-like and wholly unnuisical. Finally, the English bird has a de- cidedly Hawk-like appearance, while the Ameri- can species looks a little like an attenuated pigeon, with a disproportionately long neck and tail. The comparatively slight difference between the appearance and habits of the two species, the Yellow-billed and the Black-billed, makes it proper to cons
. Birds of America;. Birds -- North America. I30 BIRDS OF AMERICA cuckoo-clock, its performance does not even re- motely suggest the American Cuckoo's song which, in fact, is simply a series of guttural cliitcks and clucks, most unbird-like and wholly unnuisical. Finally, the English bird has a de- cidedly Hawk-like appearance, while the Ameri- can species looks a little like an attenuated pigeon, with a disproportionately long neck and tail. The comparatively slight difference between the appearance and habits of the two species, the Yellow-billed and the Black-billed, makes it proper to consider them jointly. Sometimes Mrs. Yellow-billed Cuckoo employs Mrs. Black-billed to bring up her children, and at other times the Black-billed offspring are deposited in the Yel- low-billed home. Both species are known as the. Cuurtesy of Nat. Asso. Av] Sm, YOUNG YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO " Rain Crow " because of the belief — especially among farmers — that their guttural cry predicts rain. But why " Crow," a bird which is uni- formly and famously black all over, while the Cuckoo varies from white to brown, but is essen- tially a light-colored bird? This is one of the queerest freaks of popular terminology, and sug- gests that we have to thank for it somebody who couldn't tell black from white. Both of these Cuckoos are essentially birds of mystery. Not only in their rather unearthly call, but in their specter-like comings and goings, and general behavior, they are not like unto other birds. So one is not surprised to learn that the Black-billed, at any rate, is a riest-robber, and is generally recognized as such in the bird-world. Mr. Burroughs mentions three instances in which Robins have actually killed Cuckoos; in one case the Robins caught the robber in the very act, and so pecked and mauled him that he died of his injuries. Audubon gave the same bad charac- ter to the Yellow-billed, which, he said, " robs smaller birds of their eggs which it sucks
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