res@ihuxn.UUCP (Rich Strebendt) (05/08/85)
In response to: > It's always a thrill for me to see interesting behavior > like this. It's fun to see birds just sitting in trees or standing > around looking bored, but it's much more exciting to see birds doing > whatever unique behavior they've evolved. A few years ago my wife and I observed some interesting behavior along the lines mentioned in the previous poster's message. We had thrown some un-popped popcorn remains onto our patio for the birds. We were pleased to see a male cardinal alight and discover the popcorn shortly after. Instead of eating it, as we would have expected, the cardinal took one of the kernels to the edge of the patio where a female (presumably his mate) was hidden under some bushes, just visible from where we stood. He gently offered the seed to her and placed it into her beak when she accepted it. He then returned several times (~5 times) to the popcorn on the patio and delivered it to her before eating one of the kernels himself. We have often seen adult birds feeding their young, but this was the first time that we have ever seen a bird feeding its mate! Incidently, when the pair left our patio later, the female showed no sign of injury so we did not think that she was in any way unable to feed normally. Rich Strebendt ...!ihnp4!ihuxn!res
daleh@tekcae.UUCP (Dale Henrichs) (05/08/85)
My wife and I keep 6 hens, a rooster and 2 male mallards. We've noticed that the rooster will scratch at the ground and make a unique clucking sound when he discovers some insects, worms or chicken scratch. Upon hearing this, the hens will come charging over from wherever they happen to be grazing to eat....The only time we've seen the rooster not behave this way is when we've put out leftover baked potatoes...The rooster will peck at any hens who try to eat the potato skins. The 2 mallards are a year old this spring and since they've grown up with the chickens, they have assumed that they are chickens...Well, since it is spring, the mallards have been trying to mate with the hens!! We've had to isolate the mallards in the chicken yard to keep them from killing the chickens. In trying to solve the problem, we've discovered that it isn't uncommon for male mallards to drown the females while mating!!! BTW, we will be getting two female mallards this weekend from the local audobon society to give our drakes some relief. Dale Henrichs
phillips@reed.UUCP (Patrick Phillips) (05/09/85)
Speaking of interesting behavior, last year I had the oportunity to observe a Sage Grouse lek at the Malheur Field Station in SE Oregon. It's basically a bunch of males strutting around, making popping noises, while the seemingly uninterested females walk around between them. It was quite a site. In order to get to the lek, we had to drive a van through five miles of the worst mud I've ever seen (we only got stuck once). When we finally got to the lek, it started to snow on us. It was alot of trouble, but still the best birding experience I've had. Patrick Phillips Reed College, Portland OR