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Species › Birds

Great Spotted Cuckoo

Clamator glandarius

Order
Cuculiformes
Family
Cuculidae
Presence in the Strait
Migrant
Abundance
rare
Protection in Spain
Special protection (List)
In Spanish
Críalo europeo

30% of its open observations in the area are from February.

Photograph: Frank Vassen, CC BY, vía iNaturalist

Length
38–40 cm
Wingspan
58–66 cm
Weight
135–170 g
020406080LENGTH38–40 cmWINGSPAN58–66 cmcentimetres

Presence in the Strait

Rare migrant.

Identification

Unmistakable. Slightly larger and darker than a Common Cuckoo, with a grey crest and white underparts. Light-yellow throat and breast; grey upperparts with white spotted wings. Juveniles have a black head and in flight reveal distinct rusty primaries. It parasitises crows, especially the Common Magpie, and its chicks develop together with the parents’ young.

Movements

Postnuptial migration between June and October; prenuptial migration between December and March.

Bioestrecho editorial text. Last revised: 8 September 2026.

Gallery

Photographs from iNaturalist observations with the licence checked file by file. Those marked “Strait” were taken within the area; place and date are those of each observation.