Cuckoo–Host Coevolutionary Interactions Across All Breeding Stages: Unusual Ecological Setting of a Cavity-Nesting Host

Grim, Tomáš; Rutila, Jarkko

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-73138-4_16

Cited by 8 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…30% in parasitized populations [16], compared with typically less than 15% in most parasitized populations of the most common cuckoo host [49]). The surprisingly low immediate costs to breeding redstarts that we quantified in this study, combined with perfect mimicry in redstart-cuckoo eggs [23] and the absence of second breeding attempts in redstarts [23], might thus constrain the evolution of antiparasitic behaviour and help cuckoos to maintain this host -parasite system long term (see also [50]).…”

Section: (C) Maintenance Of the Redstart-cuckoo Systemmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…six times) than a host nestling or adult [22] and cuckoo hatchlings evict host progeny [4], thus decreasing the host fitness approximately 8.4 times: this decrease is similar to other hosts [23]. This system also exhibits some unique features: redstart-cuckoos typically do not remove a host egg when laying [23], cavity nests impede successful eviction of the host's progeny and the cuckoo is sometimes forced to grow alongside redstarts (hereafter: mixed brood). Despite all the obstacles the cuckoo faces [24], the redstart-cuckoo-host system has persisted over two million years [25] and various redstart populations currently experience consistently high parasitism rates (approx.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The egg colour of the cuckoo that primarily parasitizes redstarts (hereafter: redstart-cuckoo) is similar to that of its host (egg mimicry): [21], a cuckoo nestling is distinctly heavier (approx. six times) than a host nestling or adult [22] and cuckoo hatchlings evict host progeny [4], thus decreasing the host fitness approximately 8.4 times: this decrease is similar to other hosts [23]. This system also exhibits some unique features: redstart-cuckoos typically do not remove a host egg when laying [23], cavity nests impede successful eviction of the host's progeny and the cuckoo is sometimes forced to grow alongside redstarts (hereafter: mixed brood).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rearing a virulent common cuckoo is not extra costly for its only cavity-nesting host

Samaš

Rutila²,

Honza

et al. 2018

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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Virulent brood parasites refrain from arduous parental care, often kill host progeny and inflict rearing costs upon their hosts. Quantifying the magnitude of such costs across the whole period of care (from incubation through to parasite fledgling independence) is essential for understanding the selection pressures on hosts to evolve antiparasitic defences. Despite the central importance of such costs for our understanding of coevolutionary dynamics, they have not yet been comprehensively quantified in any host of any avian brood parasite. We quantified parasite-rearing costs in common redstarts Phoenicurus phoenicurus raising either parasitic common cuckoo Cuculus canorus or their own chicks throughout the complete breeding cycle, and used multiple cost parameters for each breeding stage: incubation, brooding and feeding effort; length of parental/host care; parent/host body condition; and heterophil/lymphocyte ratio (stress-level indicator). Contrary to traditional assumptions, rearing the parasite per se was not associated with overall higher physiological or physical costs to hosts above the natural levels imposed by efforts to rear their own progeny. The low parasite-rearing costs imposed on hosts may, in part, explain the low levels of known host counter-defences in this unusually frequently parasitized cuckoo host.

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Section: (C) Maintenance Of the Redstart-cuckoo Systemmentioning

confidence: 96%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rearing a virulent common cuckoo is not extra costly for its only cavity-nesting host

Samaš

Rutila²,

Honza

et al. 2018

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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“…The nest structure of the common redstart is a likely explanation, because cuckoo chicks in steeper nest cups showed lower eviction success [27]. Another possible reason is the location of the nest cup relative to the box walls [28]. Sometimes nest cups are built just next to the back wall of the nest box, and there is no space for evicted eggs and chicks, so they fall back into the nest cup again after being evicted by cuckoo chicks [28].…”

Section: Parasitism and Eviction Successmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Another possible reason is the location of the nest cup relative to the box walls [28]. Sometimes nest cups are built just next to the back wall of the nest box, and there is no space for evicted eggs and chicks, so they fall back into the nest cup again after being evicted by cuckoo chicks [28]. Cohabitation with host nestlings was likely to cause cuckoo chicks to have higher nest mortality [18,19; but see 23].…”

Section: Parasitism and Eviction Successmentioning

confidence: 99%

Daurian redstart Phoenicurus auroreus is a host for the common cuckoo Cuculus canorus during the second, but not the first cultch

Zhang¹,

Møller²,

Yan³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Background: Coevolution in cavity-nesting host-cuckoo systems may differ from those in open-nesting hosts due to unique conditions in cavity nests. We investigated brood parasitism in Daurian redstarts ( Phoenicurus auroreus ), a regular cavity-nesting host of common cuckoos ( Cuculus canorus ).Results: A total of 15.6% ( n =358) of host nests were parasitized by cuckoos. Cuckoos were highly successful in parasitizing Daurian redstart nests: nearly all cuckoo eggs were laid in the nest cup, and all cuckoo chicks evicted all host offspring. However, egg ejection by Daurian redstarts was egg morph specific, i.e. hosts laying white eggs ejected most real cuckoo eggs, while hosts laying blue eggs did not eject any. In contrast, hosts ejected most mimetic cuckoo eggs. Moreover, most Daurian redstarts moved to nearby villages during the second breeding attempts, where the risk of cuckoo parasitism was reduced. Parasitism only occurred during the second breeding attempt, since cuckoos had not yet arrived at the breeding grounds when hosts started to lay their first clutches, which may indicate a novel and unique anti-parasite defense, advancing breeding time of hosts.Conclusions: Our results suggest that Daurian redstarts suffer from high risk of cuckoo parasitism showing more intense egg ejection while building nests closer to human habitation in the second clutch. This suggests that cavity-nesting hosts may show adaptations to brood parasites that differ from those of open-nesting hosts.

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Acoustic discrimination by hosts favours vocal trickery in fledglings of the brood-parasitic screaming cowbird

Lama

Ursino

Reboreda

et al. 2022

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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Agonistic interactions between obligate avian brood parasites and their hosts can lead to the coevolution at any stage of the nesting cycle, yet adaptations and counter-adaptations at the fledgling stage are poorly known. Young of the host-specialist screaming cowbird (Molothrus rufoaxillaris) closely resemble those of its greyish baywing (Agelaioides badius) host in appearance and begging calls. This overall similarity has shown to be adaptive to escape host discrimination after leaving the nest, but the role of acoustic signals in host deception remained unclear. We examined whether baywing parents are able to distinguish between begging calls of mimetic and non-mimetic fledglings and whether screaming cowbirds can trick host parents by vocally resembling host young. We conducted a field playback experiment using fledgling calls of screaming cowbird (mimetic), shiny cowbird (M. bonariensis; non-mimetic) and baywing (conspecific control) in the absence of any visual stimuli. Baywings were significantly less responsive to non-mimetic shiny cowbird calls than to the other call types and more responsive to screaming cowbird calls than to conspecific calls. The results support the idea that baywings cue in on species-specific acoustic signals for fledgling recognition and that vocal similarity to host young in screaming cowbirds plays a role in host deception. The observed host preference for screaming cowbird over conspecific calls further suggests that vocal mimicry in brood parasites could be reinforced by the expression of acoustic features that either act as a supernormal stimulus or exploit host's pre-existing sensory biases. Significance statementBrood-parasitic screaming cowbird juveniles closely resemble those of its primary host, the greyish baywing, in plumage appearance and vocalizations. Using a field playback experiment, we studied the ability of adult baywings to discriminate against foreign juveniles based on vocal cues, in the absence of any visual stimuli. Baywings responded differentially to own-species and non-mimetic calls, and even more, they were more attracted to screaming cowbird calls than to those of conspecific juveniles. The study supports the idea that baywings use acoustic signals to distinguish between their own and foreign fledglings, thus favouring the evolution of vocal mimicry in its specialist brood parasite. Moreover, the results suggest that screaming cowbird fledglings would be even more effective than host's own young in attracting parental attention through their begging calls.

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Cuckoo–Host Coevolutionary Interactions Across All Breeding Stages: Unusual Ecological Setting of a Cavity-Nesting Host

Cited by 8 publications

References 53 publications

Rearing a virulent common cuckoo is not extra costly for its only cavity-nesting host

Rearing a virulent common cuckoo is not extra costly for its only cavity-nesting host

Daurian redstart Phoenicurus auroreus is a host for the common cuckoo Cuculus canorus during the second, but not the first cultch

Acoustic discrimination by hosts favours vocal trickery in fledglings of the brood-parasitic screaming cowbird

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