Coccyzus
Black-billed cuckoo (Coccyzus erythropthalmus)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Cuculiformes
Family:	Cuculidae
Genus:	Coccyzus Vieillot, 1816
Type species
Cuculus americanus (yellow-billed cuckoo) Linnaeus, 1758
Species
13, see text
Synonyms
Hyetornis Saurothera

Coccyzus is agenus ofcuckoos which occur in theAmericas. The genus name is fromAncient Greekkokkuzo, which means to call like acommon cuckoo. The genus includes the lizard cuckoos that were formerly included in the genusSaurothera.

The genusCoccyzus was introduced in 1816 by the French ornithologistLouis Pierre Vieillot to accommodate a single species,Comte de Buffon's "Coucou de la Caroline", now theyellow-billed cuckoo. This which is therefore thetype species.^[1][2] The genus name is from theAncient Greekkokkuzō meaning "to cry cuckoo".^[3]

The results of amolecular phylogenetic study of the cuckoo family by Michael Sorenson andRobert Payne that was published in 2005 lead to a reorganization of some of the genera. Based on this study, the generaSaurothera (the lizard cuckoos) andHyetornis (chestnut-bellied and bay-breasted cuckoos) were lumped withCoccyzus while theash-colored cuckoo anddwarf cuckoo, at one time separated inMicrococcyx, were found to be closest relatives of thelittle cuckoo, formerly inPiaya. These three species were placed in the resurrected genusCoccycua.^[4][5]

The genus contains 13 species:^[6]

Image	Common Name	Scientific name	Distribution
	Black-billed cuckoo	Coccyzus erythropthalmus	Eastern North America, the Caribbean, Central America, and the Andes
	Yellow-billed cuckoo	Coccyzus americanus	Eastern United States, Central America, and eastern South America
	Pearly-breasted cuckoo	Coccyzus euleri	Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Suriname, Peru, and Venezuela
	Mangrove cuckoo	Coccyzus minor	southern Florida in the United States, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, both coasts of Mexico and Central America, and the Atlantic coast of South America as far south as the mouth of the Amazon River.
	Cocos cuckoo	Coccyzus ferrugineus	Costa Rica
	Dark-billed cuckoo	Coccyzus melacoryphus	Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and Venezuela
	Grey-capped cuckoo	Coccyzus lansbergi	Aruba, Colombia, Ecuador, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, Peru, and Venezuela.
	Chestnut-bellied cuckoo	Coccyzus pluvialis	Jamaica
	Bay-breasted cuckoo	Coccyzus rufigularis	Dominican Republic
	Great lizard cuckoo	Coccyzus merlini	The Bahamas (on Andros, Eleuthera and New Providence) and Cuba
	Puerto Rican lizard cuckoo	Coccyzus vieilloti	Puerto Rico
	Jamaican lizard cuckoo	Coccyzus vetula	Jamaica
	Hispaniolan lizard cuckoo	Coccyzus longirostris	Hispaniola (both Haiti and the Dominican Republic)

Thesebirds are of variable size with slender bodies, long tails and strong legs. Many have black and white undertail patterns. They occur in a variety of forests, woodlands ormangroves.

Coccyzus cuckoos, unlike manyOld World species, build their own nests in trees and lay two or more eggs.Yellow-billed andblack-billed cuckoos occasionally layeggs in the nests of other birds, but are not obligatebrood parasites like thecommon cuckoo of Eurasia.

Northern species such as yellow-billed and black-billed cuckoos are strongmigrants, wintering inCentral orSouth America, and occasionally wander to westernEurope as rare vagrants, but the tropicalCoccyzus cuckoos are mainly sedentary.

These are vocal species when breeding, with persistent and loud calls. They feed on largeinsects such ascicadas,wasps andcaterpillars (including those with stinging hairs or spines which are distasteful to many birds). Lizard cuckoos are large and powerful species, and mainly takevertebrate prey, especially, as the name implies,lizards.

• Coccyzus
• Bird genera
• Birds of the Americas
• Taxa named by Louis Pierre Vieillot

• CS1 French-language sources (fr)
• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Articles with 'species' microformats