Friend or Foe- Channel-billed cuckoo

[aimeecos]

Hi

I'm in NSW Australia and I noticed some new residents in my yard yesterday. At first when I saw one flying I though eagle or hawk because of the massive wing span but today I saw one up close and did a little research- it looks to be a Channel-billed cuckoo (theres actually two of them). Has anyone had any experience with them around chickens? any threat? My girls are 7 month old silkies, so not tiny anymore, but every time they come back the chickens run into their coop (I think the noise myna birds attacking the "cuckoo's" is a bit of a warning for them).

TIA

 

[Teila]

Hey aimeecos Welcome

Aus here also but Far North Queensland where we recently relocated to from Brisbane.

While in Brisbane, we had resident Koel Cuckoos being raised by Magpie Larks. I confess to never actually seeing any adults, just the juveniles that the Magpie Larks were frantically struggling to keep up with the food demands

We have 5 bantams and they wandered around the yard all day with no issue from the cuckoos .. our biggest issue was Crows, to the level that I even started a thread about them: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/my-home-has-become-crow-central-why.906780/#post-13793965 Which reminds me that I must update the thread now that we have moved

Luckily no Crows where we are now but sadly many, many Hawks so free ranging is now off the table