Bird Seed

 

The birds have decided they do not like the latest bag of bird seed. Same as
the last one BUT, that was a big bag bought nearly a year ago which they
scoffed, this is a new smaller one, same variety, Gardman No Mess Seed Mix
for Wild Birds.

However, on this packet it says "Special no grow blend" with a sign which
means that the seed chucked out, will not grow. Unlike the last lot which
sprouted everywhere.

Question. Has this been treated and the birds don't like it and have others
found the same problem?

Even the Pigeons are giving it a miss!!

--
Mike

The Royal Naval Electrical Branch Association
www.rneba.org.uk
Luxury Self Catering on the Isle of Wight?
www.shanklinmanormews.co.uk

 

Wasn't it 'Mike' who wrote:

What's probably happening is that the birds are able to recognise it as
different.

Humans are able to recognise most common dangerous foods by their bad
taste. Birds can't do that. Their strategy for avoiding eating toxic
items seems to be to only eat a very small amount of anything that looks
different. When they find that they feel OK afterwards, then they'll
gradually increase the amount they eat over the next few weeks until
they're scoffing it just like the old stuff.

Quite small changes can produce this effect. I've seen it happen when my
local pet shop changed the species of their sunflower seeds to a variety
that had more white stripes on the seed case, and when I accidentally
bought sultanas instead of my usual raisins.

Birds need to be quite vigilant about that sort of thing, because there
are plants out there that have adapted to produce toxins in their seeds
and berries that cause them to pass rapidly through the gut of birds
that they have co-evolved with. Those birds evolve some resistance to
those toxins, so the plants adapt by producing stronger toxins to
maintain the balance, and those stronger toxins can be very dangerous to
birds of a species that haven't evolved that specific resistance.

[If you put out something different and the birds start scoffing it
straight away, then that means that they recognise it from somewhere
else.]

--
Mike Williams
Gentleman of Leisure

 



Some rather than most, I would have thought. There is a link between
toxicity and bad taste, by which I assume you mean unpalatable, rather
than bad as in bad meat, but there are several
berries and certainly most if not all poisonous fungi which don't taste
unpleasant. The berries of Deadly Nightshade are sweet to the taste. And
if the deadly seeds of the Yew and Mistletoe are bitter to the taste,
which they may be, they are surrounded by a sugary tasting pulp. And so
on.


You seem to be implying that birds cannot taste the food they eat.
Granted they have comparatively few taste buds compared with mammals,
but many experiments have shown they can demonstrate preferences and
aversions to different substances.


How does that work? What toxin causes the rapid throughput?

I quite like the fact that the Mistle Thrush eats the berries of
Mistletoe, but only takes the surrounding pulp and leaves the seeds on a
branch - whence a new plant will grow provided a Blue Tit doesn't come
along and eat the seed!


Can you quote some research on this, please? It's certainly fascinating
but would seem to suggest rather rapid evolutionary processes.


Apparently, one bird that has experienced that foodstuff before is all
it takes for everyone else to learn very quickly about the new food.
Feeding birds typically keep a close eye on other feeding birds and will
change feeding location or food if they see it will be an advantage. One
sees this all the time in a wide range of species, e.g. geese, waders,
gulls, small birds, etc.

--
Malcolm

 


Thanks for the replies.

Very slowly the birds have tried the seed and come back to it. I had the
most this morning, too hard to count but I would estimate 25 - 30 Sparrows
down feeding on the bird table, floor under table, Coconut seed feeder, two
peanut hangers and a hanging bird table feeder. Plus those taking a bath in
the large bird bath on the ground.

The seed was very powdery so I sifted it all and it seems more palatable to
them now!!! I think that what the manufacturers have done is crush the seed
so none is whole and thus cannot grow when dropped on the soil.

--
Mike

The Royal Naval Electrical Branch Association
www.rneba.org.uk
Luxury Self Catering on the Isle of Wight?
www.shanklinmanormews.co.uk