Recent scientific study on birds has revealed new insights on inter-species social behaviour among animals.
What is the recent research on inter-species?
Birds of a feather flock together’ is an old adage to explain some well-observed aspects of social behaviour among humans and animals.
Social behaviour among animals have been researched for a long time, butwas restricted to focus on intra-species social interactions.
This had ledscientists to have a fairly sophisticated understanding of group behaviours.
However, relatively less is known about the socialising of certain animals including birds and mammals with individuals of other species.
A recent Research by Centre for Ecological Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science in Bengaluru offers new insights on inter-species social behaviour among animals.
What are the significant revelations of the study?
Scientists have tried to get clarity on the difference between mixed-species socialisations and same-species interactions and ascertain the motivation for mixed-species socialising.
It was generally thought that in same-species social interactions, all individuals get similar benefits and in mixed-species interactions, different groups get different benefits.
But the study revealed that most cases of mixed species socialisation was similar to that of single species groups and the benefits received from both the groups were also similar.
Therefore, when the motivation for joining mixed species group rather than same species group were studied, it was found that gaining concrete benefit like having same predator.
And quality of such benefit like how soon can an individual spot a predator, were factors for choosing mixed species group.
Some birds took into account the cost of competition while deciding whether to join a flock of different species, such as different food habits but share same predator.
It was also found that birds considered their flight behaviour and skills while joining another group, so as to coordinate their activities together as a flock.
A combination of these and probably more were the motivations behind birds’ decision to restrict themselves to flocks of their own species or join other groups.
These revelations would be helpful in protecting the species of the interacting group of any cascading effects if the other group of species become extinct or change behaviour.
