This little episode happened in my garden today. It was interesting and exciting to watch!

A cacophany of Noisy Miners and Currawongs drew me out into the garden to see what was up. High in a gum tree were two Channel-billed Cuckoos, being harassed as usual by the other birds. I only managed to get one of the cuckoos into my camera sights. Luckily, it turned out to be the female bird.

Here’s the Channel-billed Cuckoo on the right, with a little Noisy Miner by its side:

In this short video, you can hear the Noisy Miners peeping incessantly. The cuckoo emits a loud, harsh caw and cedes ground:

Next, the local Currawongs join the attack. The musical, bell-like tones are the Currawongs. The cuckoo flinches and utters its harsh croak. Then I noticed that there’s a Currawong nest just below where the cuckoo is sitting!

Like most cuckoos, Channel-billed Cuckoos are parasitic. They don’t build nests of their own. Instead, they look for a likely host (a Currawong does very nicely, thank you) and lay an egg in the chosen host’s nest. The Currawongs take over all parental duties, looking after the egg along with those of their own, then feeding the baby bird.

Channel-billed Cuckoo chicks don’t turf the other chicks out of the nest (many types of cuckoo chicks do) but they do eat a lot, and grow significantly bigger than the Currawong chicks.

Having decided that the neighbourhood is reasonably quiet and safe for a bit, the cuckoo eyes the nest and starts its approach:

Quick as a flash, it hops up into the nest and lays its egg:

Below is a still picture of the Currawong’s nest. I’ll keep an eye on it, in case I can spot the Currawong and cuckoo chicks when they arrive:

Channel-billed Cuckoo | Scythrops novaehollandiae | Approximate length: 58-65 cm
Noisy Miner, also called Australian Miner | Manorina melanocephala | Approximate length: 26 cm
Pied Currawong | Strepera graculina | Approximate length: 45 cm
Date spotted: 10 October 2021 (spring)
Location: Allambie Heights, New South Wales, Australia