After a few minutes, some leaves moved. I scanned the area with my binoculars. Suddenly, the bird appeared on an open branch. As it perched, I could discern the distinctive two forward, two backward toe arrangement shared by all cuckoos. Had it been a yellow-bill, the lower half of the bill would have been bright yellow, the eye ring paler, and the white tail spots much larger.
Cuckoos eat everything from insects to bird eggs, frogs, and berries.
And after returning from a winter in South America, they are no doubt hungry. One of their favorite foods is hairy caterpillars. They also eat gypsy moth caterpillars. And while there is no way cuckoos can begin to control an outbreak of gypsy moths, it's reassuring to know gypsy moths have at least a few natural predators. Tanagers, orioles, and vireos are also among the relatively few birds that eat hairy caterpillars.