Top 8 Lazy Birds That Don't Bother Making a Nest

While most birds spend their time gathering twigs, leaves and branches to prepare their nests for their young ones, some lazy birds don't bother making a nest. These birds use clever and easy methods to raise their young babies without doing the hard work.


Cuckoo is one of the laziest birds who do not make their nests instead lay their eggs in the nests of other birds. The poor host bird ends up raising cuckoo's babies with no knowledge that they are not their babies. As the babies of a cuckoo bird grows stronger and faster, so when they grow they push the other eggs from the nest. These birds are found in India, Africa and Europe.

Cowbirds is another sneaky bird who does not build their own nest. They secretly lay their eggs in other's nests like of sparrows and robins. They grow faster and take all the food even the share that is for the other babies. This way the original babies of the host birds go hungry. They are mostly found in Northern part of America.

Common Myna is a familiar bird in India. Unlike the other birds in India, Myna do not build their own nests. Instead they like to live in holes in buildings, streetlight and trees made by other birds. Mynas chase other birds away to use their readymade homes. They love staying near human lives and are also known for being noisy.


Great Horned Owl has great strength but they do not use it to build their own nest. They simply use other abandoned nests of hawks and owls. And sometimes they even lay their eggs in tree hole and cliff ledges. They are also called as 'the tiger of the sky' as they hunt at night. When it comes to nesting, they prefer recycling what natures gives them.

Emperor Penguin lives in cold Antarctica. The female bird lays one egg and the male bird carry they are on his feet under a warm skin fold called a brood pouch. Both parents take turns keeping the egg safe from the icy cold. This new way of caring for eggs shows a family teamwork.

Burrowing owls are small but very clever. They love inside holes made by other animals like prairie dogs instead of building their own nest. They live living in open spaces so that they can escape danger anytime. This owl likes decorating their borrowed home with food and manure to attract insects. this saves them effort while still their babies underground.


Rock Dove, commonly known as pigeons, are seen in city areas a lot. They do not have a proper nest. Pigeons do not put a lot of hard work in finding nests instead they have more trust on buildings and terraces of houses. They do not make a permanent proper nest. They just put a few twigs or pieces of paper on a ledge and call it home.

Barn owls are also lazy in case of building nests, so they nest in cavities of churches, barns, tree holes and attics of old houses. They lay their eggs in readymade structures. They prefer dark warm places where humans cannot find them and this way they safely raise their babies all seasons.

These birds prove that it is not always about hard work, but sometimes smart work is best for survival. Each bird has their own way of surviving without building nests. For them, being smart saves them time and energy while still keeping their babies safe.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Which bird is bad at making nests?
   Mourning doves are really bad at making nests, as it looks less like a nest and more like a collection of loose sticks.
2. Does a crow make its own nest?
   Yes, crows make their own nests using twigs, wires and soft items like lint or cloth.
3. What bird pretends to be injured to protect its nest?
   Killdeer bird fake injuries like a broken wing to distract their predators and to protect thein nests.