Quintuple parasitism of a great reed warbler nest by common cuckoos

Abstract

Multiple parasitism in obligate avian brood parasites occurs when several brood parasitic females lay their eggs in the nest of the same host. While multiple parasitism is common in the highly social, nonevicting cowbird species (Molothrus sp.), in which multiple parasitic nestlings can be raised simultaneously by the same hosts, it is less common in the case of cuckoo species (Cuculus sp.). The first cuckoo nestling to hatch from the egg evicts all nestmates; therefore, it is costly for cuckoo females to lay eggs in already parasitized nests. However, this can occur in sites with very high parasitism rates, and it can even increase the breeding success of the brood parasites, as the presence of multiple parasitic eggs in the nest of the host decreases rejection rates. Here, we present a case of a quintuple brood parasitism of a great reed warbler ( Acrocephalus arundinaceus ) nest, an extreme form of multiple brood parasitism.

The role of reed management and habitat quality on brood parasitism and chick survival of the brood parasitic Common Cuckoo

“…Cuckoos prefer habitats with ample opportunities for nest parasitism and which offer good conditions for offspring survival (Vogl et al, 2002 ). Our finding of multiply parasitized nests (eggs laid by two or more females in the same host nest) in reed habitats with continuous perch availability (Marton, 2021 ) supported this view. In general, our results show that perch availability and nest height in reed beds are crucial factors in determining the probability of brood parasitism.…”

“…Cuckoos prefer habitats with ample opportunities for nest parasitism and which offer good conditions for offspring survival (Vogl et al, 2002). Our finding of multiply parasitized nests (eggs laid by two or more females in the same host nest) in reed habitats with continuous perch availability (Marton, 2021) ditions and the host defense mechanisms against parasitism in highly parasitized populations reduce survival probability in the Cuckoo (Moskát et al, 2008).…”

Reuse of nests in the Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus: A behavior to save time and energy and to deter nest parasites?

“…Similarly to other open‐cup nesting passerines (e.g., Eurasian Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla , Zieliński, 2012; Dunnock Prunella modularis , Tomkins et al, 2015), Great Reed Warblers are known to initiate new clutches in newly built nests after predation, clutch damage, or desertion of their first nest (e.g., Mérő et al, 2014). A handful of previous studies have reported on unusual nesting cases in the Great Reed Warbler, such as new nests constructed below old nests, nest reuse after brood parasitism, and quintuple brood parasitism of a nest (Hafstad et al, 2005; Marton, 2021; Mérő & Žuljević, 2019). In this study, we report on three cases of nest reuse in the Great Reed Warbler and provide potential explanations for their occurrence.…”

Random egg laying in host nests, rather than egg-matching, explains patterns of cuckoo parasitism: a comment on Zhang et al . (2023)

“…In the field, researchers found two or more cuckoo eggs in the same nest [16,17,25], and none of these eggs were laid by the same cuckoo individual. Moreover, quintuple parasitism of a cuckoo host has been reported [26]. Quantitatively, the presence of host eggs and eggs of different cuckoo individuals within the same nest suggests that egg matching does not occur.…”