Reproduction isn’t simple
About 60 years ago, biologists believed that more than 90 percent of all birds were monogamous, and that males and females shared nesting duties and were true to their mates.
Then DNA fingerprinting was developed, and blood samples of parents and youngsters could reveal if paired birds were truly faithful. The short answer was “no.”
The newly discovered behavior became known as extra-pair copulation (EPC). It occurs when males or females of monogamous pairs copulate with birds of their species other than their mates. The behavior is widespread among birds
