Cuckoos in raptors’ clothing: barred plumage illuminates a fundamental principle of Batesian mimicry

A fundamental principle of Batesian mimicry is that it pays to look like a local harmful species that is recognizable to other local species (receivers). Mimicking an allopatric species confers no benefit, as it is not recognizable to local species. It is thought that the common cuckoo, Cuculus canorus, is a Batesian mimic of the Eurasian sparrowhawk, Accipiter nisus, predominantly via its barred plumage, which facilitates access to host nests to deposit eggs. Barring is widespread in five genera of Old World cuckoos, unlike nonparasitic cuckoos, and evolved after the evolution of parasitism. Although barred plumage is predominant in parasitic cuckoos, it is unclear whether it may have a widespread function in cuckoo–hawk mimicry. If widespread, there should be a visual similarity between all five genera of Old World parasitic cuckoos and sympatric raptors. In addition, given that it pays to look like a local harmful species, sympatry should predict the degree of similarity. We compared barred plumage from all five genera of parasitic Old World cuckoos and up to eight sympatric raptors using digital image analysis. Cuckoos predominantly matched most raptors for at least one pattern attribute. In addition, three out of five cuckoos closely resembled a sympatric raptor for all barred pattern attributes examined, and potential model species were not confined to sparrowhawks. Habitat did not appear to influence plumage pattern similarity in most species studied. Finally, the barred plumage of sympatric species was more similar in appearance than those in allopatry. Together this demonstrates that cuckoos look like a local harmful species, which is congruous with Batesian mimicry.