rapid procedure
On the lookout
Watchful – extremely watchful – she scans the reed bed. She hides among the bushes along the shoreline, moving cautiously. There! That's where they have their nest! The cuckoo female has found her victims – a pair of reed warblers with their nest.
Parasite
The cuckoo is a "nest parasite". It does not build a nest of its own, nor does it hatch its own eggs. It lays them in the nests of other birds such as the reed warbler.
Alike and different
The cuckoo's eggs look almost exactly like those of the host. The eggs of the host birds vary in appearance. The eggs of different cuckoo females also vary in appearance. Each female lays her eggs in the nest of a bird whose eggs are of the same colour as her own.
