Do Birds of a Feather Flock Together? - Mixed Species Bird Flocks

Do birds of a feather flock together? Usually... NO! Most birds are in mixed species flocks for most of the year. Let's learn why they might do that! Please subscribe to continue learning what makes life AWESOME: BioBush.tv/sub...
First we learn three benefits for single species flocks.
- A single-species flock will always stop in the right place for their species.
- It's easier to find a partner (when birds gather in single-species flocks for part of the year, this is often the reason)
- Flocks are safer, so gathering in a flock with your own species should have evolutionary advantages.
Then we learn three factors supporting mixed-species flocks.
- If flocks are safer, then it would be more convenient to form a flock out of any birds in the area, rather than waiting for one species.
- Mixed-species flocks can eat many different foods, meaning they can access more food in the same area.
- There are several reasons why foraging efficiency might increase in a mixed-species flock.
So with benefits on either side, birds choose what works for them. And what works for most species, most of the time, is mixed species flocks. In general, birds of a feather do NOT flock together.
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Copyright
Photo "DSC_8774.NEF" by Brian Ralphs, via Flickr (www.flickr.com.... Used under Creative Commons cc-by 2.0.
Photo "DSC_8786.NEF" by Brian Ralphs, via Flickr (www.flickr.com.... Used under Creative Commons cc-by 2.0.
Video "Feral parrots visit my backyard" by AnimalsAreWacky ( • Video ). Used under Creative Commons cc-by 3.0.
Video "La comida de Carlota" by Federico Filacchione ( • La comida de Carlota ). Used under Creative Commons cc-by 3.0.
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[@Ecotasia]

Tropical mixed flocks are insane. The Amazon especially was crazy because some flocks were a whole column taking advantage of every layer in the rainforest; from the forest floor, to high in the canopy. It was so amazing! From my understanding the different species eat different insects hiding in different spots, and so every bird gets to eat. -JJ

[@BioBush]

Hi John! What an amazing sight. So glad you got to see that. That mixed-species flocks exist was new information for me, but it should not be a surprise that you already knew about it. Your understanding matches my own, that they check different spots to avoid duplicating searches. It improves foraging efficiency both because some bugs are gone (being eaten by the previous bird) and because the rest are hiding (to avoid being eaten by the previous bird). Thanks for sharing your bird experience!

[@TheWildlifeBrothers]

I’ve noticed that birds in my region seem to form larger mixed flocks during the winter, but I’d have to vet that with more observations to consider it a solid rule. It’s always cool to see how many species can be present, I’ve counted 6 or 7 species right in my backyard all at once! Great discussion as always Steve!

[@BioBush]

Hi Harrison and Evan! This was a pretty new concept to me, but you and John both had it nailed down. I always assumed that flocks were one type of bird, and a mixed flock was just a bunch of separate birds in the same area. If you image search for "flock" it matches that model. Everyone has to learn something on a particular day, and I guess my day is when I wrote this video, and your day was a long time ago. But now we both know! :) Thanks for watching!

[@willlawrence1735]

Great video, thank you for sharing

[@BioBush]

Thank you, Will! There are so many interesting things to learn about birds. Thanks for watching!

[@marcopohl4875]

something unrelated but interesting: as a kid, I went to a zoo that specializes in birds and my dad bought me a yellow plush toucan with orange accents. We passed the tropical birds on our way out and one of them (I think it was the toucan, but I might be misremembering) started chasing me as much as the cage allowed it to! I obviously figured that was because of the plushy, and it was one of my funniest childhood memories, so I recently went back there with it to recreate the moment. The toucan didn't react (hence, why I might be misremembering), but its cage neighbor, a hornbill, did. It also reacted the same way to my moms' umbrella, which was also orange. This went on until one of the zookeepers told us not to provoke it, I apologized for not knowing that it acted this way out of anger and stopped, but I never asked why it was angry (in hindsight, I should have). Overall, successful recreation of a funny memory.

[@BioBush]

Hi Marco! That's interesting that it reacted so strongly to orange items. Bird body language is so weird that it's hard to tell the difference between upset and excited. I'm not confident that I could distinguish them in a hornbill. It's great that you connected to the birds so strongly. That's one of the biggest benefits of a zoo, that now you know what a toucan and hornbill are, so you have a space in your head to care about protecting them. And clearly it inspired further learning about birds, by your watching this and other channels. Thanks for sharing your memory and for learning about birds!

[@rahuchannel9319]

Wow beautiful birds I like brother

[@BioBush]

Hi again Rahu! It's a privilege to dig up information for people who want to learn. Thank you for watching!

[@DokutEmi]

Nice good👍👍🎬💯📽

[@BioBush]

Thanks for the kind words! There is so much out there to learn about birds. Thank you for watching!