6 ms·
The title is a little disingenuous: the author concludes that while city birds are evolving to be fed, it's not necessarily detrimental as studies show that bir
by telesilla 9y ago
The title is a little disingenuous: the author concludes that while city birds are evolving to be fed, it's not necessarily detrimental as studies show that birds constantly seek backup food sources.
Interesting article nonetheless and it certainly makes me reconsider my own bird feeding practice. It's been years at least, since I gave bread to ducks - I'd love nothing more than to see permanent signs at lakes and ponds pointing out how bad bread is for ducks.
https://www.popsci.com/feeding-ducks-bread https://www.popsci.com/feeding-ducks-bread
- exprA 9y agoIn larger sense, if fed birds are more successful, it affects the distribution of species (favouring fed part of the ecosystem). Not that it's necessarily a bad thing, and city environment does that anyway.
- maaark 9y agoThe article does mention how their beaks are changing to better retrieve and eat the larger sunflower seeds commonly found in feeders.
- 566d8d6 9y agoand as usual with any news headline involving evolution, it's worded the wrong way round. It should say something like "Fed urban birds have tended to survive more" i.e. looking back, not looking forward as though birds are capable of intentionally changing the genes of future generations
- M_Bakhtiari 9y ago>White bread in particular has no real nutritional value I've never understood this claim that a lot of people seem to make. There's plenty of starch and protein in it, two vital macronutrients. Same with the bizarre claim some people make about breakfast cereals, that you're better off eating the box it comes in. No, you're not, humans cannot digest cellulose.
- forgotmypw 9y agoIf you consider that the cereals are made of wheat and corn that with traces of pesticides, sugar, synthetic ingredients, and so on, all of which cause health problems, the cardboard box starts to seem more appealing.
- autokad 9y agoconsidering i ate almost entirely cereal growing up and was much healthier than most of the people i grew up with, that claim is not worth its weight in font.
- paulryanrogers 9y agoOne data point? Are you sure most of the people you know were eating healthier than you?
- LanceH 9y agoOne is more than none.
- bmurphy1976 9y agoOne is a data point. You can draw any line you feel through it but that doesn't mean it's a trend. You need more data.
- pessimizer 9y agoIt wasn't an argument about a trend. The question of whether you can drive a car by filling its gas tank with cola instead of gasoline is answered after you fill a car with cola instead of gasoline, then drive it. There's no need to establish a trend.
- autokad 9y agoyes, having 0 nutrition would mean that i could not have possibly survived. and if you want to be in the group that thinks eating indigestible cardboard is a possibility because 'there wasnt enough data', have at it. you do realize, you dont need a ton of data in everything to draw conclusions.
- grasshopperpurp 9y agoMy favorite park has signs all along the water, warning people not to feed the animals, but they use an image of an alligator for the signs.
- titzer 9y agoI think you missed the part about how feeders contribute to the spread of disease like conjuctivitis.