One of our favourite local birds is the Koekoeā, or long-tailed cuckoo! These fascinating creatures are often heard rather than seen, with their distinct, loud whistling call echoing through the air.
While we occasionally spot them, we mostly hear them in the Dansey Road Scenic Reserve, the location for Rotorua Canopy Tours’ zipline experiences. There are two types of cuckoos in New Zealand – the long-tailed and shining cuckoo. Though they share similar behaviours, the long-tailed cuckoo is more common and a frequent visitor to our reserve.
1. Where is the long-tailed cuckoo during the winter months?
These local birds migrate to New Zealand from the Pacific, including regions like the Pacific Islands and the Solomon Islands.
2. When do they arrive and leave?
They arrive during summer throughout September/October and then migrate back to the Pacific during the New Zealand winter in February/March.
Photo: Long-tailed cuckoo. (Photo from New Zealand Birds Online)
3. What do these local birds do while they’re in New Zealand?
Long-tailed cuckoo migrate to New Zealand to lay their eggs in forested areas throughout the country, which is why you can find them in the Dansey Road Scenic Reserve.
4. Where do they lay their eggs?
Long-tailed cuckoo are parasites on other birds and lay an egg in another birds nest. When the egg hatches it tips out the host birds’ eggs or chicks leaving the host birds to bring up the baby cuckoo as the foster parents.
5. Which birds’ nests do they lay their eggs in at Dansey Road Scenic Reserve?
The long-tailed cuckoo targets other native birds, like the grey warbler, whitehead, and occasionally the tomtit, in the Dansey Road Scenic Reserve. These birds often have eggs in their nests when the cuckoo arrives, making it easier for the cuckoo to lay its egg unnoticed.
Photo: A whitehead foster parent feeding a young long-tailed cuckoo (Photo from New Zealand Birds Online)
6. How long are the young cuckoos looked after for?
The foster birds look after the young long-tailed cuckoo for four weeks before it flies back to the Pacific to join up with other long-tailed cuckoo.
7. What is the distance of their migration?
The long-tailed cuckoo fly approximately 5000 kilometers from the Pacific Islands to New Zealand. To understand this distance it actually equates to three times the length of New Zealand, which would take us about four days to drive!
Photo: Long-tailed Cuckoo in flight. (Photo from New Zealand Birds Online)
8. How long does it take the long-tailed cuckoo to fly this distance?
They fly at about 80km per hour taking them about 2-3 days to cover the distance between the Pacific Islands and New Zealand.
Click this link to report sightings of shining and long-tailed cuckoo which will help contribute to the study of these New Zealand native birds and their migration patterns.