Bible Dictionaries
Cuckoo

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

shachaph; Leviticus 11:16; Deuteronomy 14:15; unclean. Rather the Greek cepphus of Aristotle, a large petrel, as the Ρuffinus cinereus . From a root "to be slender", "light of body" like a gull, whose body is small compared with its apparent size and outspread wings; it skims the waves, seeking its food in the agitated water. Andouini's gull, abounding on the shores of Syria (Tristram), a more likely bird than the storm petrel, which is seldom seen on land.

Bibliography Information
Fausset, Andrew R. Entry for 'Cuckoo'. Fausset's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/​dictionaries/​eng/​fbd/​c/cuckoo.html. 1949.