Michal Šulc
@biosulc.bsky.social
Ornithologist at the Institute of Vertebrate Biology, Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno
https://www.ivb.cz/en/person/michal-sulc/
https://www.ivb.cz/en/person/michal-sulc/
Many thanks to all authors, namely to @scienceanna.bsky.social, @lisandrinamari.bsky.social, @jtroscianko.bsky.social, V. Jelínek and T. Albrecht, to all participants that played the egg game, to our research institute @ivb-cas.bsky.social of @czechacademy.bsky.social. And of course, to all BIRDS!
November 26, 2025 at 6:13 PM
Many thanks to all authors, namely to @scienceanna.bsky.social, @lisandrinamari.bsky.social, @jtroscianko.bsky.social, V. Jelínek and T. Albrecht, to all participants that played the egg game, to our research institute @ivb-cas.bsky.social of @czechacademy.bsky.social. And of course, to all BIRDS!
🧵5/5
AI model outperformed participants, including experienced ornithologists! We suggest using our model ideally with information about egg-laying sequence to identify eggs laid by CBP. The complete pipeline is freely available in the suppl. material.
📸 Barn swallow © Vladimír Pokorný
AI model outperformed participants, including experienced ornithologists! We suggest using our model ideally with information about egg-laying sequence to identify eggs laid by CBP. The complete pipeline is freely available in the suppl. material.
📸 Barn swallow © Vladimír Pokorný
November 26, 2025 at 6:10 PM
🧵5/5
AI model outperformed participants, including experienced ornithologists! We suggest using our model ideally with information about egg-laying sequence to identify eggs laid by CBP. The complete pipeline is freely available in the suppl. material.
📸 Barn swallow © Vladimír Pokorný
AI model outperformed participants, including experienced ornithologists! We suggest using our model ideally with information about egg-laying sequence to identify eggs laid by CBP. The complete pipeline is freely available in the suppl. material.
📸 Barn swallow © Vladimír Pokorný
🧵4/5
We used photographs of non-parasitized barn swallow clutches and shuffled eggs to create thousands of parasitized clutches. Then we tested the accuracy of human participants at identification of parasitic eggs and compared it with results of our AI model.
📸 Which one is the parasitic egg?
We used photographs of non-parasitized barn swallow clutches and shuffled eggs to create thousands of parasitized clutches. Then we tested the accuracy of human participants at identification of parasitic eggs and compared it with results of our AI model.
📸 Which one is the parasitic egg?
November 26, 2025 at 6:09 PM
🧵4/5
We used photographs of non-parasitized barn swallow clutches and shuffled eggs to create thousands of parasitized clutches. Then we tested the accuracy of human participants at identification of parasitic eggs and compared it with results of our AI model.
📸 Which one is the parasitic egg?
We used photographs of non-parasitized barn swallow clutches and shuffled eggs to create thousands of parasitized clutches. Then we tested the accuracy of human participants at identification of parasitic eggs and compared it with results of our AI model.
📸 Which one is the parasitic egg?
🧵3/5
CBP is still quite a mystery, partially because it is hard to reveal it. Eggs laid by parasitic and host females look often very similar and therefore genetic markers has been recommended to reveal this reproductive strategy.
📸 Barn swallow eggs with numbers showing the egg-laying sequence
CBP is still quite a mystery, partially because it is hard to reveal it. Eggs laid by parasitic and host females look often very similar and therefore genetic markers has been recommended to reveal this reproductive strategy.
📸 Barn swallow eggs with numbers showing the egg-laying sequence
November 26, 2025 at 6:09 PM
🧵3/5
CBP is still quite a mystery, partially because it is hard to reveal it. Eggs laid by parasitic and host females look often very similar and therefore genetic markers has been recommended to reveal this reproductive strategy.
📸 Barn swallow eggs with numbers showing the egg-laying sequence
CBP is still quite a mystery, partially because it is hard to reveal it. Eggs laid by parasitic and host females look often very similar and therefore genetic markers has been recommended to reveal this reproductive strategy.
📸 Barn swallow eggs with numbers showing the egg-laying sequence
🧵2/5
Conspecific brood parasitism (CBP), where females lay eggs in nests of other females of the same species, is in birds relatively common. It has been observed especially in waterfowl (pochards, goldeneyes, coots) but also in songbirds (swallows, sparrows, starlings).
📸 Common goldeneye female
Conspecific brood parasitism (CBP), where females lay eggs in nests of other females of the same species, is in birds relatively common. It has been observed especially in waterfowl (pochards, goldeneyes, coots) but also in songbirds (swallows, sparrows, starlings).
📸 Common goldeneye female
November 26, 2025 at 6:07 PM
🧵2/5
Conspecific brood parasitism (CBP), where females lay eggs in nests of other females of the same species, is in birds relatively common. It has been observed especially in waterfowl (pochards, goldeneyes, coots) but also in songbirds (swallows, sparrows, starlings).
📸 Common goldeneye female
Conspecific brood parasitism (CBP), where females lay eggs in nests of other females of the same species, is in birds relatively common. It has been observed especially in waterfowl (pochards, goldeneyes, coots) but also in songbirds (swallows, sparrows, starlings).
📸 Common goldeneye female
Where exactly did you see it? They should be on the way to wintering grounds in Sub-Saharan Africa.
October 29, 2025 at 6:34 AM
Where exactly did you see it? They should be on the way to wintering grounds in Sub-Saharan Africa.
:-) it didn’t nap - they are quite heavy birds so when put in the hand, they stay on their back/wings for some time. It may also be a strategy called tonic immobility (similar to tanatosis) that helps them avoid predation attack.
May 16, 2025 at 5:23 PM
:-) it didn’t nap - they are quite heavy birds so when put in the hand, they stay on their back/wings for some time. It may also be a strategy called tonic immobility (similar to tanatosis) that helps them avoid predation attack.
Egg mimicry! Cuckoos have them!
April 1, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Egg mimicry! Cuckoos have them!
Reposted by Michal Šulc
We also tracked down a birder, Mr Otis from Reading, who was sitting on the dock of the bay in Southampton and caught a glimpse of a Cuckoo with a tag flying overhead! It must have been Tom cruising along to his Norfolk breeding grounds. What a journey! 🛥️🌍😀
April 1, 2025 at 7:00 AM
We also tracked down a birder, Mr Otis from Reading, who was sitting on the dock of the bay in Southampton and caught a glimpse of a Cuckoo with a tag flying overhead! It must have been Tom cruising along to his Norfolk breeding grounds. What a journey! 🛥️🌍😀