Talk:Brood parasite
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[edit] Question about brood parasitic birds
How come the host doesn't notice that one of the chicks is of a different species, or at least that some of the other chicks are missing? Don't birds have the ability to tell? Does the parasite's parent specifically choose hosts that can't tell?
Eje211 00:19, 30 Apr 2005 (UTC)
Basically, yeah - birds don't have the ability to tell. They'll feed the one with the widest-open mouth first, then (once that one is full) the next-widest-open, and so on until the parent runs out of food. Brood-parasite babies tend to be larger, so their mouths are larger also. Bird parents have small brains that just recognize a few particular traits, and those are the traits that the brood-parasite babies overexpress.
The interesting thing about brood-parasites, incidentally, is that they can't afford to be too successful, otherwise they'll wipe out their caretaker species.DS 14:15, 20 August 2005 (UTC)
[edit] housecat?
I think it counts.
The housecat has evolved to have a baby-like cry instead of the more typical hiss or roar of a wild cat. (like a bobcat for example) The housecat is also sized like a baby.
People care for housecats, often to the exclusion of having their own kids. The housecat satisfies a maternal longing.
—Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.110.145.57 (talk • contribs) 20:52, August 11, 2006
- Housecats may have been bred for size and (relative) tameness, that makes them pets, not brood parasites. jimfbleak 05:10, 12 August 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Cuckoo wasp
I put in a brief mention of the cuckoo wasp - an amazing and beautiful critter I had the pleasure of watching last year. They are metallic blue-green. I know they occur in Australia, not sure about elsewhere in the world. Would be worth finding more info on them for the article. Gemfyre 06:59, 11 October 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Those that kill the host eggs?
Why are brood parasites raised when they kill host eggs/hatchlings, such as in honeyguides? The Jade Knight 09:10, 23 July 2007 (UTC)
- They trick their hosts into accepting them. Basically the host thinks" mouth in nest = feed it" They don't look too closely. Although it doesn't always work, some hosts realise they are being tricked and don't raise the chick. Sabine's Sunbird talk 09:52, 23 July 2007 (UTC)
And those that don't trick the host don't leave any offspring, so you can imagine how a mutation in the host that allowed them to detect offspring from imposter would quickly be met by a counteradaptation. Richard001 07:45, 31 August 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Gallery
I'm interested in making a Commons gallery/category for this subject, though the only image specifically of a brood parasitism and not just one of the species involved I know of is the Cuckoo one here, and it's not even over there yet. Does anyone know of any others available? Would it be any use just to use the parasite species themselves until something suitable comes along? Richard001 08:02, 31 August 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Insect cases
Should this be expanded upon more here, or somewhere else? The article suggests they are normally treated as kleptoparasites, so I'm not sure how much detail this section should have. Richard001 23:46, 5 October 2007 (UTC)
