The family Cuculidae includes 33 genera with 147 known species world-wide. The subfamily Cuculinae are the cuckoos of the Old World (Africa, Europe and Asia) and these are all obligate brood parasite breeders, meaning they do not build nests or rear their own chicks. They parasitise the nests of other ‘host’ species who incubate the eggs and rear the chicks to independence.
However, most other species in the family Cuculidae are not brood parasites, including the cuckoos’ closest relatives in the Kruger, the Burchell's, Senegal and black coucals.
Many other species have adopted the brood parasite strategy, including the whydahs, indigobirds, and honeyguides.
In the article in the previous edition of KRUGER MAGAZINE we covered the five cuckoos from the genus Cuculus. In this issue we will cover the other species from the genera Clamator, Pachycoccyx, Chrysococcyx and Cercococcyx that occur in Kruger National Park.
“Their behaviour lies outside the generally accepted norms of human morality and has sometimes been referred to as ‘the evil genius’ of cuckoos.”
Over the millennia, brood parasitic species and their hosts
