Leanne Boyd of Forster has noticed a pair of wattlebirds with a big task ahead of them.
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She has observed that a "cheeky cuckoo has laid an egg in another species nest to trick them into raising her chick.”
The chick is most likely a pallid cockoo.
The happy family is living near the number one boat shed in Little Street, Forster.
Leanne said the sight of a ‘large’ chick being fed by a smaller ‘parent’ was rather humorous.
According to Birdlife.org.au, the Pallid Cuckoo lays its eggs in the nests of honeyeaters, woodswallows, whistlers and flycatchers.
“Common host species include the Willie Wagtail, Rhipidura leucophrys and the Hooded Robin, Melanodryas cuculatta.
“The female cuckoo removes one of the host's eggs and replaces it with one of her own.
“The cuckoo egg usually closely resembles the host egg, and the unsuspecting host hatches it along with its own.
“The cuckoo egg usually hatches more quickly and the young cuckoo instinctively forces the other eggs (or chicks) out of the nest.
“The cuckoo rapidly outgrows its 'foster' parents, who frantically search for sufficient food to satisfy the demanding young bird.”
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