A superb fairy-wren calls to a Horsfield's bronze-cuckoo. Brood parasites like cuckoos lay eggs in other birds' nests and leave them behind for the host birds to raise. David Ongley / Cornell Lab of ...

Because of this costly deception, host species benefit from recognizing and deterring parasites before they lay their eggs. The researchers observed that over 20 bird species from four continents use ...

More than 20 species of bird around the world use a similar “whining” alarm call to warn birds like cuckoos are around. The call seems to be understood across species, and its specific use hints at ...

Instead, the birds are connected by the presence of brood parasites. All 21 species that produce the alarm call often live in areas with high concentrations of brood parasites, suggesting the call ...