Cowbird Chicks Must Adopt ‘The Goldilocks Principle’ To Boost Survival
<p>Brown-headed cowbirds, <em>Molothrus ater</em>, are fascinating because they have a peculiar child-rearing strategy. Female cowbirds lay their eggs into the nests of other songbirds and trick them into raising their chicks to independence. This reproductive strategy is known as brood parasitism. Some brood parasites, like cowbirds, are known as generalist brood parasites, because they don’t specialize on parasitizing just one avian host species. Instead, cowbird chicks hatch into the nest of one of several hundreds of different potential host species, each with their own style of chick care and level of competition between chicks. Thus, cowbird chicks must quickly figure out how to survive and thrive despite the unpredictable social environment they find themselves in.</p>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/discourse/cowbird-chicks-must-adopt-the-goldilocks-principle-to-boost-survival-5dabbff20622"><strong>Visit Now</strong></a></p>