Main Research Interest
Cuckoo parasitism and host defences in Australia

Background
My PhD (Cambridge University, 1995) was on the role of song in the variable mating systems of the dunnock Prunella modularis and the alpine accentor Prunella collaris. In the course of my research I found that female song, which is generally uncommon in temperate species, occurs in both these species. I developed my interest in the evolution of female bird song further in a post-doctoral fellowship at Peterhouse, Cambridge (1996-2000).

Research Interests
I am currently conducting a broad-scale comparison of the defences of Australian host species against parasitism by five species of cuckoos, and a more detailed study of the interaction between superb fairy-wrens Malurus cyaneus and horsfield's bronze-cuckoos Chrysococcyx basalis. My field work is in Campbell Park, Canberra, where five species of cuckoos breed; the pallid cuckoo, the fan-tailed cuckoo, the brush cuckoo, horsfield's bronze-cuckoo and the shining bronze-cuckoo. My main aim is to test between two hypotheses about cuckoo-host interactions in Australia. First, Australian cuckoos and their hosts may be engaged in an 'evolutionary arms race' in which the cuckoo evolves ever better ways of tricking the hosts into accepting their offspring, while the host evolves ever better defences against parasitism. Alternatively, cuckoos and their hosts may have reached an 'evolutionary equilibrium' in which cuckoos have adjusted to the host's life history pattern to the point where total acceptance of the cuckoo egg by hosts is an evolutionary stable strategy.

Selected Publications 2004-08 Click Here for a Full List and PDFs
Langmore, N.E., Maurer, G., Adcock, G.J., Kilner, R.M. 2008. Socially acquired host-specific mimicry and the evolution of host races in Horsfield's bronze-cuckoo Chalcites basalis . Evolution 62(7): 1689-1699.

Russell, A.F., Langmore, N.E., Gardner, J.L., Kilner, R.M. 2008. Maternal investment tactics in superb fairy-wrens. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B 275: 29-36.

Adcock, G.J., Langmore, N.E., Kilner, R.M. 2007. Polymorphic microsatellite loci for studies of bronze-cuckoo species (Genus Chalcites : Aves). Molecular Ecology Notes 7: 678-680.

Langmore, N.E., Adcock, G.J., Kilner, R.M. 2007. The spatial organization and mating system of Horsfield's bronze-cuckoos, Chalcites basalis . Animal Behaviour 74: 403-412.

Langmore, N.E., Kilner, R.M. 2007. Breeding site and host selection by Horsfield's bronze-cuckoos, Chalcites basalis. Animal Bahaviour 74: 995-1004.

Russell AF, Langmore NE, Cockburn A, Astheimer LB, Kilner RM. 2007. Reduced egg investment can conceal helper effects in cooperatively breeding birds. Science 317: 941-944.

Rogers, A.C., Langmore, N.E., Mulder, R.A. 2007. Function of pair duets in the eastern whipbird: cooperative defense or sexual conflict? Behavioral Ecology 18: 182-188.

Rogers, AC, Mulder, RA & Langmore, NE (2006). Duet duels: Sex differences in song matching in duetting eastern whipbirds. Animal Behaviour 72, 53-61.

Starling, M, Heinsohn, RG, Cockburn, A & Langmore, NE (2006). Cryptic gentes revealed in pallid cuckoos Cuculus pallidus using reflectance spectrophotometry. Proceedings of the Royal Society: Biological Sciences. 273: 1929-1934.

Adcock, G., Langmore, N., Mulder, R., Kilner, R., (2005) “Microsatellite loci for population and behavioural studies of Horsfield’s bronze-cuckoo (Chalcites basalis: Aves)”, Molecular Ecology Notes (electronic), Vol 5, pp 619-621.

Riebel, K., Hall, M., Langmore, N., (2005) “Female songbirds still struggling to be heard”, Trends in Ecology and Evolution, Vol 20, Issue 8, pp 419-420.

Langmore, N., Kilner, R., Butchart, S., Maurer, G., Davies, N., Cockburn, A., Macgregor, N., Peters, A., Magrath, M., Dowling, D., (2005) “The evolution of egg rejection by cuckoo hosts in Australia and Europe”, Behavioral Ecology, Vol 16, pp 686-692.

Langmore, N., (2004) “Canny Cuckoos & Wily Wrens”, Nature Australia, Vol 28, Issue 1, pp 52-59.