COOPERATIVE BREEDING IN THE AUSTRALIAN AVIFAUNA AND BROOD PARASITISM BY CUCKOOS (CUCULIDAE)

Cooperatively breeding birds may be more susceptible to interspecific brood parasitism by cuckoos than solitarily breeding birds because the additional activity of helpers around the nest could attract the attention of cuckoos. Alternatively, the helpers-at-the-nest may provide additional vigilance and therefore some degree of protection from cuckoos. These possibilities were investigated in a com- parative analysis of the frequency of cuckoo parasitism and the breeding system of potential and actual hosts among the Australian avifauna. There was no statistically significant association between passerine breeding system and brood parasitism by cuckoos. © 1993 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.