Great Spotted Cuckoo.
19th May 2025
One bird that is difficult to get close to is the Great Spotted Cuckoo. This applies to any country they inhabit, they exhibit typical Cuckoo behaviour, and they are intelligent, street-wise and crafty. You have to watch their behaviour and be patient in the extreme.
Susan and I were at a location known for small numbers of these birds but nothing was showing or calling and after an hour we were going to leave, but I said ‘Let’s have a cup of coffee before we go’ We always carry a little travel flask of coffee it’s so convenient. As we were sat there suddenly I saw something out of the the corner of my eye flying from a small bush. Remarkably it was a Great Spotted Cuckoo – the crafty so and so had been there all the time we were there!!
It flew into the bottom of another small bush and just stayed there for ten minutes, but we now knew it was there. However, it started to move and then dropped to the ground no doubt to catch a caterpillar or some sort of insect. Then it started to make its way up to the top of the bush and we could now see it in plain view, what a chance to shoot it. These are elusive birds and opportunities like this don’t come around too often.
Susan and I were at a location known for small numbers of these birds but nothing was showing or calling and after an hour we were going to leave, but I said ‘Let’s have a cup of coffee before we go’ We always carry a little travel flask of coffee it’s so convenient. As we were sat there suddenly I saw something out of the the corner of my eye flying from a small bush. Remarkably it was a Great Spotted Cuckoo – the crafty so and so had been there all the time we were there!!
It flew into the bottom of another small bush and just stayed there for ten minutes, but we now knew it was there. However, it started to move and then dropped to the ground no doubt to catch a caterpillar or some sort of insect. Then it started to make its way up to the top of the bush and we could now see it in plain view, what a chance to shoot it. These are elusive birds and opportunities like this don’t come around too often.