Breeding Cuckoos or other parasitic birds in zoos?

[Haliaeetus]

Hello,

I wonder if any zoo / private collection has tried to breed the Cuckoos or other parasitic birds (e. g. the Cowbirds in the Americas), keeping them with host species.

According to Zootierliste, 3 European/Russian/Middle Eastern zoos keep the Common Cuckoo Cuculus canorus (and many others kept it in the past), and several zoos used to keep the Great Spotted Cuckoo Clamator glandarius, indigenous around the Mediterranean Sea.
And I don't count the (probably?) numerous species of exotic parasitic birds kept in Europe, and all the species that are kept in the other continents.

Have you got any answers about it ?

Thanks.

 

[Zoovolunteer]

I dont know about cuckoos, but I believe several species of whydah have been bred at least occaisionally in captivity. Whydahs parasitise waxbills (estrildine finches) and different whydah species target specific host species. Breeding has occurred where a pair of whydahs are in a large aviary with multiple pairs of breeding host species. Pintailed Whydah has I think been bred most often, and as a result of the cage bird trade in both whydahs and waxbills they are established in several parts of the USA, especially Orange County in California, where they parasitise the also introduced Nutmeg Mannikin. Some of the African cuckoos like Diderik and Klaas' Cuckoos target weaver birds, and it might be possible to do something similar with them, but there is no conservation need to breed them so I think other than rescue birds we are unlikely to see many cuckoos in collections.

 

[Torgos]

It seems your interest here is in parasitic cuckoos and other such species - cuckoos such as guiras, roadrunners have been bred many times.
A friend in Florida bred multiple pin-tailed whydah in a big flock of mixed waxbills. The breedings were "accidental" in that he didn't know about the breedings till post fledging but they happened. The hosts were not identified but he had common, orange-cheeked, lavender and gold-breasted waxbills in the flight.

 

[birdsandbats]

It seems your interest here is in parasitic cuckoos and other such species - cuckoos such as guiras, roadrunners have been bred many times.
A friend in Florida bred multiple pin-tailed whydah in a big flock of mixed waxbills. The breedings were "accidental" in that he didn't know about the breedings till post fledging but they happened. The hosts were not identified but he had common, orange-cheeked, lavender and gold-breasted waxbills in the flight.

Yes but Guira Cuckoos and roadrunners are not brood parasites.

 

[Great Argus]

A few places have cowbirds, I've no idea whether they're bred or not.
I'm not aware of any parasitic cuckoos having been kept in NA currently or in the recent past.

 

[Torgos]

Yes but Guira Cuckoos and roadrunners are not brood parasites.

Yep, I phrased that badly!
We have guira on eggs right now. Expensive little boogers when you consider how many mouse pinkies they get through when rearing. Ours have never had the decency to eat mealworms etc when rearing chicks and they are in competition with other species in the walkthrough. But worthwhile when you have a line of them snugged up together on a perch!