Help Me Identify a Bird

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

timbobmc — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 23:30:13 GMT

Their song is terrific. It goes, "KAKAkakakakakowkowkowkow kowp kowp kowp" with a molto ritard at the end.

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

Whidden — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 21:57:41 GMT

I didn't think I did, but I just went and listened to the birds song on this website, and I heard that a lot yesterday in the woods. I'm not good with bird songs, but I recall knowing that it was something I didn't normally hear.

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

Jim Penny — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 14:27:26 GMT

I also agree with the YB-Cuckoo. Did you get to hear it's "song"? It is just as neat as seeing one.

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

jbm32206 — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 11:01:52 GMT

I concur that it's a Yellow-billed Cuckoo, nice addition to your list

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

Whidden — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 00:26:20 GMT

Thanks to everyone!

I'm very happy by the way. Never expected to see a Cuckoo of any kind. I guess I have this image of them in clocks. I imagined them more like a small fat woodpecker. This bird was sleak and cool and real fast. He snagged some bugs, and didn't seem that shy. Let me get pretty close before it took off.

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

Bird man of Texas — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 23:55:33 GMT

Nancy:

Bird man,

Do you know why sometimes the yellow around the eye shows and sometimes it doesn't?

Is the yellow more on the eyelid so it depends on how far open the eye is?

Thanks,

Nancy

I think the amount of yellow is variable just like the Yellow-billed Magpie. When I was in California all my bird books showed that the yellow extended to under the eye of the magpie and not around the eye. The birds we saw obviously had yellow all the way around the eye.

I don't think that it is like a hummingbirds gorget, just bare yellow skin.

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

mousebird — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 23:27:20 GMT

I think it has to do with the angle that the sun hits hits the eye. I believe this may be iridescent and therefore only obvious at certain angles ( like the gorget of a male hummer).It's an optical effect.

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

Nancy — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 23:02:20 GMT

Bird man,

Do you know why sometimes the yellow around the eye shows and sometimes it doesn't?

Is the yellow more on the eyelid so it depends on how far open the eye is?

Thanks,

Nancy

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

Bird man of Texas — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 22:53:32 GMT

Yellow-billed Cuckoos for sure.

Re: Two birds from Tulsa

Nancy — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 22:44:54 GMT

Whidden,

I'm pretty sure they are both Yellow-billed Cuckoos. They have the yellow orbital ring and a curved black bill with yellow on the lower mandible. They also have some rufous in the wings. Other photos I looked at sometimes showed the yellow around the eyes and sometimes it didn't show.

I'm sure someone will let us know for sure,

Nancy

Two birds from Tulsa

Whidden — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 22:05:32 GMT

Taken today in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

This first one was far away and the sun was bad.

The beak is kind of curvy. I thought the second bird might be the same kind of bird, though it was about a mile away from the first bird. The beak is close, but the yellow ring around the eyes I don't see on the first bird.

First bird:

Second bird: