Why Some Bird Parents Ignore Their Begging Chicks

Plants and Animals





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Great tit nestlings beg for food using a mixture of calls, begging postures, and brightly colored mouths. Camilla Hinde

Sometimes bird moms and dads have to pick which of their chicks to feed. According to a new Nature Communications study, that decision depends largely on environmental conditions. Parents in a quarter of the bird species studied ignore their begging chicks, and some even neglect smaller chicks that beg more in favor of bigger chicks that beg less.