Egg-Laying Behavior in Screaming Cowbirds: Why Does a Specialist Brood Parasite Waste So Many Eggs?

Mársico, María Cecilia de; Reboreda, Juan C.

doi:10.1525/cond.2008.110.1.143

Cited by 18 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…Similar low synchronization rates to those found by us in the great spotted cuckoo have been reported in several Molothrus brood parasite–host systems (McLaren and Sealy ) and even much lower in other systems. Specifically, Mason (1980; cited in De Mársico and Reboreda ) reported very poor synchronization of laying between the screaming cowbird Molothrus rufoaxillaris and its baywing Agelaioides badius host, with 87% of the parasitic eggs being laid during the host pre‐laying stage. Kattan () found that only 47% of the eggs laid by the shiny cowbird M. bonariensis were synchronized with the egg‐laying period of its house wren Troglodytes aedon host, and De Mársico and Reboreda () reported that nearly 50% of shiny cowbird eggs were laid in bay‐winged cowbird nests before host laying.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Access by brood parasites to appropriate host nests requires not only geographical location and counteracting possible host defences, but also synchronizing egg laying with that of the host nest (Fiorini and Reboreda , Moskát et al ). Synchronization between parasitism and host laying is crucial to the reproductive success of brood parasites for several reasons: first, if laid before the host begins laying, the parasitic egg is more likely to be rejected (Davies and Brooke , Lotem et al , Sealy , De Mársico and Reboreda , but see Moskát and Hauber ). Second, a parasitic egg laid after the onset of incubation may not receive sufficient incubation to hatch (Rothstein , Davies , ).…”

Section: Hypotheses Predictions and Aimsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Hypothesis 1. Given that previous parasitism implies a shortage of non‐parasitized nests (Moskát et al , De Mársico and Reboreda ), there should be a relationship between the level of synchronization of laying and the intensity of parasitism by great spotted cuckoo females. Thus, intensity (i.e.…”

Section: Hypotheses Predictions and Aimsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Second, nests in which the content is not visible from the outside could preclude good synchronization because it would be more difficult for parasitic females to monitor host laying (Kattan , Fraga , Antonov et al ). Third, low density of host nests or high density of brood parasites could provoke a shortage of non‐parasitized host nests at the appropriate stage, hampering the brood‐parasite female from effectively timing parasitism (Moskát et al , De Mársico and Reboreda ). And fourth, an unpredictable duration of the pre‐laying period of the host after the nest has been finished would preclude synchronization of parasitism (Mason 1980 [cited in De Mársico and Reboreda ], De Mársico and Reboreda ).…”

Section: Hypotheses Predictions and Aimsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Synchronization of laying by great spotted cuckoos and recognition ability of magpies

Soler

Pérez‐Contreras

Soler

2015

Journal of Avian Biology

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Brood parasites rely entirely on the parental care of host species to raise the parasitic nestlings until independence. Th e reproductive success of avian brood parasites depends on fi nding host nests at a suitable stage (i.e. during egg laying) for parasitism and weakly defensive (i.e. non-ejector) hosts. Finding appropriate nests for parasitism may, however, vary depending on ecological conditions, including parasite abundance in the area, which also varies from one year to another and therefore may infl uence coevolutionary relationships between brood parasites and their hosts. In this scenario, we explored: 1) the degree of laying synchronization between great spotted cuckoos Clamator glandarius and magpies Pica pica during two breeding seasons, which varied in the level of selection pressure due to brood parasitism (i.e. parasitism rate); 2) magpie responses to natural parasitism in the pre-laying period and successfulness of parasitic eggs laid at this stage; and 3) magpie responses to experimental parasitism performed at diff erent breeding stages. We found that, during the year of higher parasitism rate, there was an increase in the percentage of parasitic eggs laid before magpies started laying. However, the synchronization of laying was poor both years regardless of the diff erences in the parasitism rate. Th e ejection rate was signifi cantly higher during the pre-egg-laying and the post-hatching stages than during the laying stage, and hatching success of parasitic eggs laid during the pre-egg-laying stage was zero. Th us, non-synchronized parasitic eggs are wasted and therefore poor synchronization should be penalized by natural selection. We discuss four diff erent hypotheses explaining poor synchronization.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Hypotheses Predictions and Aimsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Hypotheses Predictions and Aimsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Hypotheses Predictions and Aimsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Synchronization of laying by great spotted cuckoos and recognition ability of magpies

Soler

Pérez‐Contreras

Soler

2015

Journal of Avian Biology

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“…The first is pre-laying ejection (the ejection of cowbird eggs laid before the baywing begins laying). Screaming and shiny cowbirds lay 31 per cent and 48 per cent of their eggs, respectively, before the first baywing egg [15]. We quantified baywings' responses to these cowbird eggs from a sample of 116 nests found before host's laying (see the electronic supplementary material, table S1).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A novel method of rejection of brood parasitic eggs reduces parasitism intensity in a cowbird host

et al. 2013

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The hosts of brood parasitic birds are under strong selection pressure to recognize and remove foreign eggs from their nests, but parasite eggs may be too large to be grasped whole and too strong to be readily pierced by the host's bill. Such operating constraints on egg removal are proposed to force some hosts to accept parasite eggs, as the costs of deserting parasitized clutches can outweigh the cost of rearing parasites. By fitting microcameras inside nests, we reveal that the Neotropical baywing (Agelaioides badius), a host of the screaming cowbird (Molothrus rufoaxillaris) and shiny cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis), instead circumvents such constraints by kicking parasite eggs out of the nest. To our knowledge, this is the first report of a passerine bird using its feet to remove objects from the nest. Kick-ejection was an all-or-nothing response. Baywings kick-ejected parasite eggs laid before their own first egg and, if heavily parasitized, they ejected entire clutches and began again in the same nest. Few baywings were able to rid their nests of every parasite egg, but their novel ejection method allowed them to reduce the median parasitism intensity by 75 per cent (from four to one cowbird eggs per nest), providing an effective anti-parasite defence.

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Obligate Brood Parasitism on Neotropical Birds

Fiorini

Mársico

Ursino

2019

Behavioral Ecology of Neotropical Birds

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Egg-Laying Behavior in Screaming Cowbirds: Why Does a Specialist Brood Parasite Waste So Many Eggs?

Cited by 18 publications

References 37 publications

Synchronization of laying by great spotted cuckoos and recognition ability of magpies

Synchronization of laying by great spotted cuckoos and recognition ability of magpies

A novel method of rejection of brood parasitic eggs reduces parasitism intensity in a cowbird host

Obligate Brood Parasitism on Neotropical Birds

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