Bronzed cowbirds often lay their eggs in other birds’ nest. Brood parasites are some of the bird kingdom’s most notorious sneaks. They don’t rear their own young but instead pawn the task of child ...

Birds worldwide share a unique alarm call to warn each other about brood parasites like cuckoos. This vocalization, a blend ...

More than 20 species make a nearly identical noise to warn nearby birds of brood parasites, a behavior that bridges the ...

Researchers William Feeney, James Kennerley, Niki Teunissen have published a study that suggests over 20 species of birds ...

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Common cuckoos aren’t known for being model parents. Rather than ...

Daurian redstarts move closer to humans to protect their nests from brood parasitism. Daurian redstarts move their nesting sites closer to or even inside human settlements when cuckoos are around. In ...

This story appears in the January 2018 issue of National Geographic magazine. For the care and feeding of its offspring, the common cuckoo outsources. When she’s ready to lay an egg, a female Cuculus ...

There is an azure blue egg hidden in a hanging basket of ferns on our front porch. It belongs to a female house finch that just about caromed off my forehead last week when I tipped a watering can ...

Brood parasites depend entirely on their host species to raise their nestlings until independence. Thus, brood-parasite females must discover and select nests that are at a suitable stage for ...

Daurian redstarts move their nesting sites closer to or even inside human settlements when cuckoos are around. In doing so, they actively protect their nest against brood parasitism, as cuckoos avoid ...