Bird Species That Don't Make Nests
Emperor Penguin Because Emperor Penguins live in the cold Antarctic, where nesting materials are scarce, they’re forced to find an alternative to a traditional nest. The alternative needs to be somewhere warm and protected from the wind.
Chuck-Will’s-Widow The Chuck-will’s-willow is a nightjar found in North America that lays its eggs directly on leaves, pine needles, or dirt rather than in a nest. It’ll typically lay its eggs in dense, forested areas near the edge of a clearing.
Common Murre Common Murres live together in colonies of hundreds, packed so densely that there’s no room for nests. Common Murres spend most of their time in the open ocean, but they’ll lay their eggs on cliff sides, directly on the ground.
White Tern The White Tern lives in tropical areas, laying eggs up in the trees within nooks and crevices of large branches. Because this bird lays its eggs without nests, it’s less likely to attract parasites.
Common Potoo The Common Potoo lays its eggs on top of broken tree branches, where it can sit on top of them to incubate without building a nest. It does this to make it easier to camouflage, as building a nest would attract the attention of potential predators.
Cowbird Both the Brown-headed Cowbird and the Bronzed Cowbird are brood parasites, meaning they steal other birds’ nests rather than making their own. These birds will lay their eggs in another’s nest, then leave the young for the other parents to raise.
Cuckoo Finch Cuckoo Finches, like Cowbirds, are brood parasites that use other birds’ nests for their young. They’ll typically go for Tawny-flanked Prinia nests. Unfortunately for the Cuckoo Finch, the prinia have started recognizing their eggs and have developed the ability to peck them to death.
Common Cuckoo The Common Cuckoo, another brood parasite, lays eggs in many different birds’ nests, including the Reed Warbler. Common Cuckoo young are aggressive towards the host young, pushing the other eggs out of the nest before they’re even hatched.
Lesser Honeyguide Lesser Honeyguides usually lay their eggs at barbets’ nests but may also lay their eggs at the nests of kingfishers and starlings. Their brood parasites will hatch with incredibly sharp hooked beaks, ready to kill from the moment they leave the egg.
Indigobird Indigobirds are brood parasites native to Africa that steal nests from the Jameson’s Firefinch. They’ll lay their eggs inside the nest, then leave them for the firefinch to raise. Their young even have markings on the inside of their mouths to mimic the mouths of the firefinch.