Meet Diederik Cuckoo, One Of The Most Beautiful Bird In The World

This article is about Diederik cuckoo (Chrysococcyx caprius). I wrote it for two reasons: to talk a bit about beauty of this amazing bird and to illustrate something about these birds biology. They are more than just pretty colours. Diederik cuckoo are inter-African migrants that are coming back to SA around now (October), and their breeding season is about to get started. So it is a good time to learn something about them.

The genus name Chrysococcyx is Greek for gold cuckoo (χρυσός, κούκος) The specific name caprius is thought to be a misprint for either cuprea (coppery) or capensis (of Cape of Good Hope). The English name is an onomatopoeic rendition of its call. If you like this article, Please share on facebook with your friends and family.