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An
interesting comment. I don't know that book but sounds very useful. My concern
about the TV program good though it was, is that it might appear to create the
impression that there is only one species that does that and / or that all
cuckoos make that call. The thing that surprised me about that documentary was
the amount of attention it paid to the question about how does the cuckoo's egg
get in the nest. I find it hard to see why the question became an issue. How
would anyone think anything other than that the cuckoo lays her egg in the
nest?
Philip
I suspect many COGites watched this program.
If you didn't, it is on iView until 18 April. Excellent program -
certainly worth watching.
It is based on the work of Cambridge researcher Ian
Davies. Davies wrote an excellent book (recommended to me some time
ago by Peter Fullagar - thank you Peter) called "Cuckoos, Cowbirds and
other Cheats". Unlike the program which was restricted to the Common
Cuckoo in UK, the book takes a holistic look at cuckoos and passerine brood
parasites and details the research that has exposed the biological processes in
the parasitism and defences against it. It covers all, or certainly
most, such parasites across the world including Australia's cuckoos and
major host species. Excellent book and very readable.
David Rosalky
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