Cuculiformes / Cuculidae / Cuculus
Lesser Cuckoo
Cuculus poliocephalus · 小杜鹃
Introduction
A species of cuckoo in the family Cuculidae, native to East Asia and the Himalayas, wintering in East Africa and Sri Lanka.
Distribution & Habitat
Native to East Asia and the Himalayas; winters in East Africa and Sri Lanka.
Culture
In Japan, known as hototogisu, it is frequently praised in senryu for its song and celebrated by waka poets since the Kokin wakashū (920). Sei Shōnagon mentions courtiers traveling specifically to hear its song in The Pillow Book (1002). It is the central image in poem 81 of the Hyakunin Isshu. The haiku magazine Hototogisu and Masaoka Shiki's pen name refer to this bird. In Chinese, it is called xiāodùjuān. In Korean literature, its song represents sadness.
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Taxonomy
- Order
- Cuculiformes
- Family
- Cuculidae
- Genus
- Cuculus
Distribution
breeds southern and eastern Asia; winters peninsular India, Sri Lanka, and eastern Africa
Vocalizations
Data Sources
Species description from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Bird images and sounds sourced from GBIF, contributed by citizen scientists worldwide under Creative Commons licenses.
Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.
