Cuckoos lay their eggs in the nests of other species including dunnocks, reed warblers and meadow pipits.

BBC: Manx birdwatchers asked to listen out for cuckoos

But the cuckoo traditionally parasitized on meadow pipits on the common which had largely gone because of overgrowth, she said.

BBC: Birdwatcher gave 1922 cuckoo clue

"Its difficult to identify, and to the untrained eye it looks like the European pipits, until you see its shiny ebony black legs, " he said.

BBC: American Buff-Bellied Pipit