Date: September 5, 2018
Source: University of Exeter
The pecking order of garden birds
is determined by their size and weight, new research shows.
In a study at bird feeders,
researchers from the University of Exeter and the British Trust for Ornithology
(BTO) found larger species like house sparrows and greenfinches monopolised the
best food and spent longer feeding than smaller birds.
Meanwhile, smaller birds such as
blue tits and coal tits had to feed quickly and were left with lower-quality
food.
The researchers say the findings
have "important implications" for using bird feeders as a
conservation method.
"Bird feeding has become
increasingly popular in the UK and throughout much of the world in recent
decades," said senior author Professor Jon Blount, of the Centre for
Ecology and
Conservation on the University of
Exeter's Penryn Campus in Cornwall.
"However, its impacts are
still poorly understood. "Bird feeders create a concentrated food source
which can result in more quarrels between individuals of different species,
which we predicted would lead to the formation of a dominance hierarchy.
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