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Brood parasitism is a subclass of parasitism and phenomenon and behavioural pattern of animals that rely on others to raise their young. The strategy appears among birds , insects and fish . The brood parasite manipulates a host , either of the same or of another species, to raise its young as if it were its own, usually using egg mimicry ...
A facultative parasite is an organism that may resort to parasitic activity, but does not absolutely rely on any host for completion of its life cycle.. Examples of facultative parasitism occur among many species of fungi, such as family members of the genus Armillaria.
In brood parasitism, the hosts suffer increased parental investment and energy expenditure to feed parasitic young, which are commonly larger than host young. The growth rate of host nestlings is slowed, reducing the host's fitness. Brood parasites include birds in different families such as cowbirds, whydahs, cuckoos, and black-headed ducks.
N. pustulatus is known to be capable of facultative brood parasitism, targeting other Nicrophorus species. In laboratory experiments, N. pustulatus has been shown to parasitize broods of N. orbicollis, laying eggs amongst the N. orbicollis brood that are raised by the host parents. [44]
The parasitic Polyergus queens found colonies either by adoption, where a queen invades the nest of a slave species, killing the resident queen and appropriating workers and brood present, or by "budding", in which a queen invades or is accepted into a host species nest accompanied by workers from her nest of origin. [19]
Hyperparasitoids are either facultative (can be a primary parasitoid or a hyperparasitoid depending on the situation) or obligate (always develop as a hyperparasitoid). Levels of parasitoids beyond secondary also occur, especially among facultative parasitoids. In oak gall systems, there can be up to five levels of parasitism. [13]
Candiru (vampire fish of Brazil, a facultative parasite) Lampreys; Male Deep sea anglers; False cleanerfish; Hood mockingbird; Oxpeckers (cleaning symbiosis) Snubnosed eel; Vampire bat; Vampire finch; Cuckoo (brood parasite) Cowbird (brood parasite)
Alternatively, the parasite may live within the host endoparasite; for example, the fluke. An obligate parasite that does not live directly in or on the host, but rather acts at a distance – for example, a cuckoo which hatches and is raised by non-relatives – is known as a brood parasite.