Why are Caribbean birds so tame? (1 Viewer)

[biowizard]

One thing that always amazes me, is just how fearless of humans, many Caribbean birds are. In St Lucia, you only have to open a door or a window, and within moments one or more Lesser Antillean Bullfinches will fly in, knowing where to find the kitchen, and totally ignore your presence. These little darlings, together with Grey Tremblers, Zenaida Doves, Bananaquits, Topical Mocking Birds, Kingbirds and of course the ubiquitous Carib Grackles will pester you at your table during outdoor meals, most coming to hand if offered a morsel of food. Only the Grackles tend to be wary, but will still sneak up to your plate and steal food if they think you are looking the other way.

In the UK, with the possible exceptions of Trafalgar Square Feral Pigeons (Rock Doves), and seaside Herring Gulls, most birds are extremely timid. In my childhood, Sparrows would regularly come to hand or land on your afternoon tea table, but no more. An entire flock will flee the garden the moment I open the kitchen door. Conversely, in St Lucia at least, species that were timid 25 years ago, such as the Grey Trembler, now just walk gently across the table, and up to your hand, to nibble on a piece of buttered toast or whatever other offering you make.

Can anyone explain these extreme differences in general bird behaviour between the UK and SLU?

Here are some shots I took of some Bullfinches and Bananaquits sharing a piece of cake in my left hand. No need for a spotting scope here - just my trusty Olympus 4/3 camera in my right hand ...

 

[flyingpelican]

Is it because they have not had to develop a fear of humans as a survival mechanism. The Caribbean islands are relatively isolated and have a long history of minimal human presence. This lack of human pressure might have allowed these birds to remain tame, making them easy to observe in their natural habitat.

 

[biowizard]

Is it because they have not had to develop a fear of humans as a survival mechanism. The Caribbean islands are relatively isolated and have a long history of minimal human presence. This lack of human pressure might have allowed these birds to remain tame, making them easy to observe in their natural habitat.

At first sight that seems an entirely reasonable explanation; however the evidence is almost the opposite. Let me mention just two things:

1) Even in parts of the UK with minimal pressure on wildlife (such as the rural southwest), formerly "tame" species such as the House Sparrow, are now very timid; it is all the more so in the faster-developing parts (such as the southeast). This change has happened within my lifetime.

2) In St Lucia, the north of the island has been hugely developed (housing, hotels, roads, industry), with scant regard for the environment, over the past 25 years that I've been visiting, and yet this is the very part where more and more formerly timid species are now hand tame!

In other words, these two examples of bird population appear to have been reacting in opposite directions regarding their relation to humanity and its environmental impacts over the past quarter to half century.

 

[biowizard]

Is it because they have not had to develop a fear of humans as a survival mechanism. The Caribbean islands are relatively isolated and have a long history of minimal human presence. This lack of human pressure might have allowed these birds to remain tame, making them easy to observe in their natural habitat.

PS, inspired by your nickname on this forum, the latest birds to give us an amazing show were two pairs of Brown Pelicans, that were feeding on a shoal of young reef fish in about 12" of water, just off the beach. They too were completely oblivious of my wife and me, flying close splashing down as close as 3-4 metres away from us and occasionally wetting us with water droplets in the process! I didn't have my camera with me at the time, but my wife got some lovely video and stills on her Olympus TG-6 diving camera!

 

[lgonz1008]

It really depends on which island you are on and the culture of the people in the island (how often birds are hunted or persecuted for food or pet trade). Looking at the Bananaquit, you are probably somewhere in the Lesser Antilles, which isn't known to have any big hunting history, mostly due to the wildlife being too small or unappetizing to humans.

This stark contrast is also seen in other places in the Americas, wildlife just hasn't been hunted to such an extent that the mere sight of a person makes all of them disappear from the area. Best example I can give is South Florida, we probably have the oddest dynamics with some of our wildlife, for example: if you go to the Flamingo area of the Everglades, you can probably stretch your hand to touch an Osprey nest, but said nest is used every year and the parents don't really care for people. Even migratory species know they can "relax" in urban Miami, species like Ovenbirds and other warblers just ignore your existence if you stay still for a bit and they walk between your feet and even species hunted elsewhere in their range, such as White-crowned Pigeon in the Caribbean, tend to be wire birds in the urban areas fighting the feral pigeons off their spot in the wires.

 

[biowizard]

It really depends on which island you are on and the culture of the people in the island (how often birds are hunted or persecuted for food or pet trade). Looking at the Bananaquit, you are probably somewhere in the Lesser Antilles, which isn't known to have any big hunting history, mostly due to the wildlife being too small or unappetizing to humans.

This stark contrast is also seen in other places in the Americas, wildlife just hasn't been hunted to such an extent that the mere sight of a person makes all of them disappear from the area. Best example I can give is South Florida, we probably have the oddest dynamics with some of our wildlife, for example: if you go to the Flamingo area of the Everglades, you can probably stretch your hand to touch an Osprey nest, but said nest is used every year and the parents don't really care for people. Even migratory species know they can "relax" in urban Miami, species like Ovenbirds and other warblers just ignore your existence if you stay still for a bit and they walk between your feet and even species hunted elsewhere in their range, such as White-crowned Pigeon in the Caribbean, tend to be wire birds in the urban areas fighting the feral pigeons off their spot in the wires.

That's a fair point. And in St Lucia (indeed in the Lesser Antilles), the two species of Patagioenas (white-crowned and scaly-naped pigeons) were indeed hunted extensively in the past for food, becoming relatively scarce. They are now recolonising the island (we had a pair nesting in a tree about 60 ft from our villa deck some 250ft above sea level), but are very wary of people!

Conversely, the Zenaida doves (Zenaida aurita), one of two species of this genus, is one of the birds which has become considerably less wary of humans over the past 25 years. The comparatively recently introduced Eurasian Collared Dove, however, has brought its timidness with it: it will be interesting to see whether in time, it too, becomes hand-tame like the Zenaidas!

 

[lgonz1008]

Conversely, the Zenaida doves (Zenaida aurita), one of two species of this genus, is one of the birds which has become considerably less wary of humans over the past 25 years. The comparatively recently introduced Eurasian Collared Dove, however, has brought its timidness with it: it will be interesting to see whether in time, it too, becomes hand-tame like the Zenaidas!

The timidness line made me laugh a bit, Eurasian Collared Doves are probably as bold, if not bolder, than the Rock Pigeons and the native Mourning Doves here in Miami. They are so accustomed to the city environments and so uncaring of their surroundings, that their invasion to South Florida literally changed the status of the Cooper's Hawk from winter resident to year-round resident simply because the doves were such an easy food supply by staying out on the wires without a care 24/7.

 

[biowizard]

The timidness line made me laugh a bit, Eurasian Collared Doves are probably as bold, if not bolder, than the Rock Pigeons and the native Mourning Doves here in Miami. They are so accustomed to the city environments and so uncaring of their surroundings, that their invasion to South Florida literally changed the status of the Cooper's Hawk from winter resident to year-round resident simply because the doves were such an easy food supply by staying out on the wires without a care 24/7.

The Collared Doves are a relatively new import to St Lucia. I remember when I saw my first one, and it was a very weird moment.

I was having lunch with a dear (and sadly now, departed) friend, Maria Grech. She was English by birth, but had lived most of her life in St Lucia. She worked tirelessly with the National Trust and other heritage/wildlife organisations, and was a fount of knowledge and wisdom about St Lucia's natural history. She taught me, over many wonderful meetings, most of what I know about the Island's ecology.

So there we were, in a little place called East Winds Inn, sitting in a tropical garden under a thatched cabana, eating lunch. Maria said to me, "Brian, my son Jason said he saw a new bird today, one he'd never come across before. It is the size of a Zenaida, but with pinkish grey plumage and a darker mark on the neck".

I replied, "Oh, that sounds like a Eurasian Collared Dove, which are all over the UK".

At which exact moment, one landed on the ground about 6 feet from us - the first I'd ever seen in St Lucia too. I continued, unfazed ...

... "Like this one!"

Maria stared at me, and exclaimed, "How on earth did you do that?!!".

Despite being a little discombobulated myself by this perfectly timed 100% coincidence, I simply smiled, and said, "These things happen!".

That was about 10 years ago, and Maria was concerned that the new invader might cross-breed with the Zenaidas or simply out-compete them into decline. Happily that has not happened, and the Zenaida doves are actively aggressive towards the Collared invaders!

 

[01101001]

I know two people living at an undisclosed location in central Poland who don't actively seek birds, and yet they've had inches-close encounters with raptors (within and beyond their garden), two Common Cranes landing in their raspberry patch and a pair of Eurasian Rollers nesting in a grapevine just outside the window. Everything despite the fact that their neighbours actively persecute all living things. Meanwhile, the vine has borne fruit for the first time in years.

 

[jurek]

In Europe, the Netherlands is famous for absolutely fearless birds.

All hunting is banned since several decades, and Grey Herons perch on roofs in cities, gull colonies are in small pools enclosed by curved motorway entrances, in nature reserves red deer hinds feed their fawns 10 meters from people, wolves famously let themselves be photographed etc.

This has further effect: most birds can exist in the Netherlands at all, rather than being gone extinct due to urbanization.

In countries with high human population hunting = habitat destruction = big losses for farming and tourism. Because if there is hunting then animals are afraid of people in general. Then animals are excluded from places used by people for other activities, because they are afraid of being shot. Then nature reserves must be much larger, and national parks must limit tourist paths, activities like boats etc. Then farmers face more restrictions from nature conservation, and tourism industry has fewer tourists because it must close tourist routes and make further restrictions.

 

[biowizard]

Curious counter-example: one group of pretty much fearless birds in the UK, despite being widely hunted and shot: DUCKS! In the sights of many a shotgun throughout large parts of the year, nonetheless Mallard and other species show no fear of mankind when offered bread beside a pond, even within earshot of some shooting!

 

[angusmcoatup]

Curious counter-example: one group of pretty much fearless birds in the UK, despite being widely hunted and shot: DUCKS! In the sights of many a shotgun throughout large parts of the year, nonetheless Mallard and other species show no fear of mankind when offered bread beside a pond, even within earshot of some shooting!

I’d say that’s dependent on local populations. I’ve seen extremely flighty Mallard away from parks acting like most other shy ducks.