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Nest sharing between an American Robin and a Northern Cardinal.

Article Excerpt
Both intra- and interspecific interactions among birds can have significant influences on nesting success. For example, brood sharing, brood parasitism, nest usurpation, and interspecific feeding have been documented among passerines (Payne 1977). Nest usurpation is often restricted to species with enclosed or cavity nests (Lindell 1996), but other interactions have been observed across a variety of cup-nesting species (e.g., Payne 1977, Shy 1982, McNair 1984). Brood parasitism of Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) is known to occur, mainly from Brown-headed Cowbirds (Molothrus ater) (Halkin and Linville 1999). Intraspecific brood sharing has also been observed between two female Northern Cardinals, and was attributed to fertilization of both by the same male (Rice 1969). Cardinals have also exhibited intraspecific cooperative breeding behavior among unrelated individuals (Halkin and Linville 1999), as well as an instance of feeding of American Robin (Turdus migratorius) young (Shy 1982). American Robins, however, are less tolerant of nest violations, generally rejecting Brown-headed Cowbird eggs (but see Lowther 1981), and have not been observed to exhibit intraspecific cooperative brood care (Sallabanks and James 1999).

Examples of interspecific nest sharing, where eggs from both species are present in the nest and/or cared for by both species, are less commonly documented, but not absent from...