Q. Do brown-headed cowbirds select the nest of another bird to lay eggs in based on which species raised them as a nestling? In other words, if a cowbird is raised as a chick by a red-winged blackbird ...

During a birdwatching stroll last spring, John Bates spotted a newly hatched killdeer chick. Common in North America, the long-legged birds often dart across the ground hunting for insects. Bates ...

European cuckoos lay very different eggs depending on the host species. Genetic analyses have revealed how this adaptation is inherited without leading to speciation.

Spring is in the air. Birds are singing and beginning to build their nests. It happens every year, like clockwork. But a new study in the Journal of Animal Ecology shows that many species of birds are ...

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About a third of Chicago-area bird species are laying their eggs earlier than normal, a study recently published in the Journal of Animal Ecology found. Researchers believe the change in nesting is ...

Birds have evolved to fit particular environments. Eggs have evolved along with the birds. The eggs that birds will lay this spring will vary in shape and color to facilitate successful hatching in a ...

Birds lay their eggs carefully in their nests away from human life. Many people have seen that the birds have abandoned their ...

Of all the vertebrates on Earth—that is, animals with backbones—birds are the only ones that lay colorful eggs. Scientists are still unsure why, but new research brings us a step closer to finding out ...

Spring is in the air. Birds are singing and beginning to build their nests. It happens every year, like clockwork. But a new study in the Journal of Animal Ecology shows that many species of birds are ...