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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nLike many birds, cuckoos are declining<\/a> throughout the world.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the U.S., for example, in California, these migratory birds have declined from 15,000 mating pairs to just 40 mating pairs within 100 years.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Even in the United Kingdom, where the common cuckoo is a well-known summer visitor, it\u2019s estimated that only about 20,000 mating pairs exist, and those numbers seem to be going down as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These declines are primarily due to habitat loss. New World cuckoos have lost around 90 percent of the habitat they need to survive and thrive, prompting the Audubon Society and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to designate 300,000 acres of the western U.S. as critical habitat for cuckoos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On a global scale, cuckoos are listed as a threatened species by the IUCN. Nationally, several countries have passed rulings to protect these and other migratory birds.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n In the U.S., cuckoos are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act<\/a>. Canada has a similar protective policy in place, the Migratory Bird Convention Act<\/a>, which also protects cuckoos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the U.K., cuckoos have a conservation status of red and are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With all of these acts and rulings in place, it is safe to say that cuckoos are protected throughout much of their range. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The hope is that these protective measures will help the species to recover and increase in number once again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It is illegal to harm any of the birds protected in the acts discussed above. This includes cuckoos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This means you cannot legally shoot cuckoos if you live in the U.S., Canada, or the U.K. You also cannot trap, capture, injure, poison, or tamper with their wellbeing in any other way.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n It is also unlawful to tamper with a cuckoo\u2019s nest during the breeding season if it is being used or constructed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These laws are broad and far-reaching. Simply put, however, they protect cuckoos and other migratory and wild birds from all kinds of human-caused harm and danger.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n If you are trying to get rid of cuckoos in your area, you will have to be very careful in how you do it. You may not kill these birds, harm them in any way, or remove their nests or young during the breeding season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, what can you do?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many people don\u2019t like cuckoos because of their reputation as brood parasites. They will often lay their eggs in the nest of other birds, and upon hatching, the baby cuckoos will push other eggs or chicks over the edge of the nest, as you can see in the following video:<\/p>\n\n\n\nCan You Shoot Cuckoos?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What Can You Do to Get Rid of Cuckoos?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n