Are There Any Other Birds That Lay Their Eggs In Other Birds’ Nests – Like Cuckoos Do?
Answers
Yes, the parasitic weavers and whydahs of Africa do. These birds live throughout large parts of Africa south of the Sahara desert and on savannah and open plains and in villages, gardens and open woodlands. Like cuckoos, they do not build their own nests, but lay their eggs in the nest of other birds, especially those of small waxbills.
Unlike cuckoos, however, the whydahs are not so cruel. They do not throw out the eggs and small baby birds of the host species of bird in order to take all of the food brought into the nest by the adoptive parents. Instead, the baby bills convince the waxbill parents that they are just extra chicks that belong to them; they mimic the waxbills' chicks by having the same bright skin colour inside their mouths and the exact number and pattern of black spots on their palates.
When the young whydahs and waxbills open their mouths for food, they all look the same, so the parent bird feeds all the growing chicks.
answered 2 years ago
The most common North American bird that is a "nest parasite" -- lays eggs in other birds' nest -- is the brown-headed cowbird, a robin-sized songbird.
Cowbirds developed this adaptation in order to keep up with migrating herds of buffalo (cows) over the Great Plains. Creating a nest and raising a brood take a lot of time and energy, so the cowbird enlisted the unwitting aid of other bird parents to to this for them.
The cowbird lays its eggs in the host bird's nest and throws out existing eggs. The cobirds hatch first and are bigger that the host's chicks. But the host cannot disinguish between the cowbird chick and its own, so feeds the invader. The juvenile cowbird also kills the host's chicks sometimes.
In some areas, cowbird-eradication efforts are under way because of nest parasitism's effect on declining species of other birds.
answered 2 years ago
In the U.S. Cowbirds also lay their eggs in the nests of other birds, like the Black-capped Vireo. Cowbird chicks grow larger than the vireos, so they can reach higher, get better feeding attention from the vireo parents, and even push the vireo step-siblings out of the nest.
answered 9 months ago
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