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Thirty-one records from Kowhai Bush and the Nest Record Scheme show that Shining cuckoos (Chrysococcyx lucidus) laid from mid-October to early January. At Kowhai Bush, a cuckoo was seen to “freeze” while it apparently watched a pair of Grey warblers (its host), and warblers were distressed when a stuffed cuckoo was put near their nest. Dissection of a female cuckoo disclosed an egg-shell (probably a warbler’s) in its gizzard. The newly hatched Shining cuckoo bears natal feathers (trichoptiles) and is thus unusual among Cuculinae. The physical and behavioural development of nestlings is described, and weights and tarsal lengths are given. Fledgling cuckoos were fed by their foster parents for up to 28 days.