Brood parasitism by the enigmatic and rare Pavonine Cuckoo in Amazonian Peru

Brood parasitism is an uncommon and understudied strategy in Amazonian bird communities, within which only 5 species are known to be brood parasites. We present data on the brood-parasitic behavior of the Pavonine Cuckoo (Dromococcyx pavoninus) in 3 host species of small-bodied flycatchers in the Peruvian Amazon that construct hanging globular nests with side entrances. During the 7 yr of the study, we encountered 74 nests of these 3 hosts, but parasitism occurred only in 9 nests (12.2%) in 2 yr. Only 1 Pavonine Cuckoo egg was deposited in each host nest (n = 7), and eggs were markedly dissimilar in size and coloration between hosts and parasite. Incubation investment per day was slightly higher (4%) for 1 parasitized nest than for nonparasitized nests. Overall, 33% of parasitic eggs (n = 6) hatched; cuckoo nestlings apparently removed host eggs and killed host nestlings. The nestling period lasted 24 days, and the growth-rate constant based on nestling mass (k = 0.23) was slower for parasite nestlings than for their hosts (k = 0.27 and 0.31). Food provisioning rates were greater in 1 parasitized nest (2.1 ± 0.7 feedings hr-1 nestling-1) than in nonparasitized nests (1.1 ± 0.4). Nestling cuckoos may further mimic the plumage of their host nestlings. Our results suggest that Pavonine Cuckoos negatively affect their hosts' breeding success and are engaged in a coevolutionary arms race with hosts that have defenses against parasitism. © 2017 American Ornithologists' Union.

• Autores: Londoño Guerrero, Gustavo Adolfo; Sánchez Martínez, Manuel A.
• Tipo de recurso: Article of investigation
• Fecha de publicación: 2017
• Institución: Universidad ICESI
• Repositorio: Repositorio ICESI
• Idioma: eng
• OAI Identifier: oai:repository.icesi.edu.co:10906/81737
• Acceso en línea: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85010815628&doi=10.1642%2fAUK-16-190.1&partnerID=40&md5=2aec9ce8c8f7ffedd5557fc99f2c4487; http://hdl.handle.net/10906/81737; https://doi.org/10.1642/AUK-16-190.1
• Palabra clave: Pájaros - especies raras; Incubación; Sitio de nido; Interacción huésped-parásito; Ecología; Conservación de la biodiversidad; Ecology; Biochemistry research
• License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/