2018. Feeders Are Like a Drive-Thru for Birds
December 03, 2018
Open gallery
By Leo Frampton, Paola Valencia and Alivia Zimmerman
9 hours in the college woods patiently waiting to discover that birds are just like us! They chose the more beneficial ways for their costs. Work smarter not harder.
Kayla and Billy braved the weather in order to cure their powerful bird-related curiosity. They questioned the common knowledge which would state that a bird’s favorite food would be berries native to the region. They spent time observing three different potential bird-food sources: native berries, invasive berries, and bird feeders. It seemed instead that rather than going for the berries, the birds largely preferred seed from the feeders. It is likely that the reason for this was that the bird seed was the quickest and easiest dining strategy for the birds. This is also true of many humans who, when making themselves dinner, cook Trader-Joe’s frozen dumplings instead of making any dinner that involves some sort of genuine effort to cook. However, for those who decide this as their preferred dinner-strategy, it would be in their best interest to fry the dumplings in oil for three minutes first, fill the pan with water, and (quickly!) cover the pan.
The study, which had nothing to do with dumplings or the best way to cook them, demonstrated how resourceful animals are able to be in the wild, as well as the ways human activities (such as feeders being set up) can influence their actions. Foraging can waste vital energy which could be used for other tasks, such as, I don’t know, singing? Birds love to sing.