Jay, many seed-eating species feed insects to their young. Insects are quite 
nutritious and are abundantly available in the breeding season.

It's entertaining to watch newly independent fledglings trying to figure out 
what's edible and what's not. Presumably, natural selection has ensured that 
birds have reasonable accurate instincts for identifying proper food.

Janet Millenson
Potomac, MD (Montgomery County)

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"Look at the birds!" -- Pascal the parrot

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "" <>
To: <>
Sent: Sunday, August 06, 2006 12:54 PM
Subject: [MDOSPREY] Life Histories of Cowbirds and Cuckoos


Recent emails about Song Sparrows and others feeding young Cowbirds got me 
thinking and wondering about something....
I assume that hosting parents of Cuckoos feed them what they instinctively 
feed their own young.  I can't imagine a seed-eating parent fulfilling the 
nutritional needs of Cuckoo nestlings when adults (I understand) feed almost 
exclusively on insect fare, primarily caterpillars.  Do adult Cuckoos, or 
Cowbirds for that matter, seek the nests of species that feed their young 
the proper diet?
To the extent that fledged Cuckoos learn gleaning techniques from observing 
their parents, how is it that they successfully feed themselves as adults 
without that example?
I'm sure I'm not the first to wonder about this.  Answers, anyone?