Research has shown that dominant birds forage in safer spots and at safer hours of the day (when there’s less predation). (We also love the curious Northern Cardinal who seems to be observing the interactions almost as closely as a behavioral scientist would.)ĭoes Dominance Matter? When a dominant nuthatch occupies a feeder and forces the others to wait until he’s done eating, it’s more than just birdy bullying-it can be life and death. The two chickadees on the sheltered side seem to tolerate each other well and may be mates. There’s some squabbling at the beginning, but notice how one chickadee ends up getting pushed to the windy, snowy side of the feeder and leans or edges away from further interactions. Watch the posturing as these three Black-capped Chickadees work out their positions at the feeder. In this example, a female Northern Cardinal lets a couple of White-throated Sparrows know when they’ve gotten a little too close to “her” sunflower seeds. Within the same species, generally speaking, males tend to dominate females and older birds dominate younger ones. Feeder hierarchies can also involve birds of several species, with the larger species usually winning out over the smaller. Displacement also plays out when one bird waits nearby for another bird to finish eating before flying over to a feeder. ĭisplacement. One of the most common and easiest to see behaviors, displacement occurs anytime one bird leaves to get out of the way of another bird. Here’s a quick primer on three common dominance-related behaviors you might see. At your feeder, watch for when one bird changes its posture in the presence of another, or how some birds fly away altogether.
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