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The Cuckoo Clock: Why the Cuckoo Bird Keeps Time

Author libre libre
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Everyone knows the cuckoo clock. Every hour a little door opens on the clock, a cuckoo pops out, and, bobbing back and forth, it counts off the time. One CUCKOO for one hour. Five CUCKOOs mean five o'clock. But why was the cuckoo chosen for such an important job?

Cuckoo clock
Cuckoo clock

Why the cuckoo is a scatterbrained bird

You really shouldn't trust the cuckoo to keep track of time: it is a scatterbrained bird! Out in the forest the cuckoo has no sense of time at all: sometimes it starts calling at the crack of dawn, waking the whole woodland crowd from the middle of the night, and other times it sleeps right through the sunrise.

Cuckoo bird
The cuckoo bird

Hear it, and you never know: is it morning or evening, time to sleep or time to get up? The cuckoo sets its clock however it pleases.

You could set your watch by the chaffinch

The clock would be far better entrusted to the chaffinch. The chaffinch begins to sing at exactly five o'clock in the morning. You could set your watch by it. Five years of observation produced this result: every first of May began with its first morning song at exactly five o'clock — and it was simply astonishing! Over five years it was off by five minutes at most: once it ran five minutes ahead, and another time it lagged five minutes behind.

Chaffinch bird
The chaffinch bird

These were different chaffinches, of course. Yet every one of them struck up its song as if on cue. And precise, like clockwork. No, if you are going to build a clock with a bird, make it with a chaffinch, not a cuckoo. This one won't let you down!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a cuckoo clock?
A cuckoo clock is a timepiece featuring a small door that opens each hour, from which a cuckoo emerges, swaying and calling out to mark the time. Each 'cuckoo' call signals an hour, so five calls means five o'clock.
Why was the cuckoo chosen for the clock?
The cuckoo became the traditional bird for these clocks, though its call is memorable and distinctive. In the wild, however, the cuckoo is unreliable at keeping time, singing at unpredictable hours rather than following a fixed schedule.
Is the cuckoo a reliable timekeeper?
No, the cuckoo is an erratic bird. In the forest it has no sense of time, sometimes calling before dawn and waking everyone, and other times sleeping past sunrise. You cannot rely on it to keep accurate time.
Which bird keeps the most accurate time?
The chaffinch is remarkably punctual. It begins singing at exactly five o'clock in the morning. Over five years of observation, it started its song on May 1st within five minutes of five o'clock, making it far more reliable than the cuckoo.
How accurate is the chaffinch compared to the cuckoo?
The chaffinch is extraordinarily precise, varying by no more than five minutes over five years of observation. Unlike the erratic cuckoo, the chaffinch is dependable enough that you could set your clock by its morning song.

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