| Squirrel Cuckoo (Piaya cayana) |
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Piaya cayana occurs in the tropical Americas from northern Mexico to northern Argentina; also in Trinidad. It inhabits a range of treed habitats, including humid tropical forests, gallery forests, woodlands, shrublands, and plantations; up to 2,800 m. Fourteen subspecies. This is a large arboreal cuckoo with a very long, graduated tail. The length is 40-50 cm; weight 75-135 g. The bill is yellow or greenish. The upperparts are chestnut or rufous-brown; the throat and breast are buff, cinnamon or grey; the belly is light gray; the tail is rufous, with broad white tips. The nest is a loose assemblage of sticks supporting a cup made of leaves; in trees or dense bushes, 1-12 m above the ground. The clutch contains 2 eggs; incubation 18-19 days; the young may fledge after 8 days. Squirrel Cuckoo feeds on large insects, and occasionally spiders, small lizards, and treefrogs; rarely eats fruit.
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