Other than the Cowbird...what other bird lays eggs in other birds' nests?

Photo: D Gordon E. Robertson

The Solitary Sandpiper

(Tringa solitaria)

You learn something new every day as a birdwatcher.   I was reading a very old field guide on birds recently that said Solitary Sandpipers lay their eggs in old songbird nests, often placed high in trees.   I quickly checked one of my modern field guides and it said the same thing.   I'd never heard of this before, but it is quite true.   Almost all sandpipers migrate in flocks and nest on the ground.  However, the Solitary Sandpiper breaks both of those rules.  In migration, it is almost always alone, as its name would suggest, and it inhabits northern spruce bogs.   It does not however nest on wet ground, but lays its eggs in old songbird nests, high up in trees.

Please comment if you wish.

BarrytheBirder