Red Crane Attacks Companion, Suffering Head Injuries; Internet Users: Nature is So Amazing!
Recently, a video went viral on Twitter, showing a red crane attacking its companion. Here’s the explanation: it’s a unique regurgitation feeding phenomenon found in birds, called 'goose milk'.
Parveen Kaswan, who shared the video, is an employee of the Indian Forest Service. He says, ‘They are not fighting, this is one of the most amazing scenes in nature. Look at how these red crane parents do it?’
The red liquid is not blood, but a substance called ‘goose milk’. One red crane is feeding its baby, while the other is busy secreting goose milk, which has all flowed onto the head of the other one.
Goose milk is a secretion regurgitated by young birds by birds of the pigeon-dove family, such as red cranes. Like mammalian milk, it is the main food for baby birds in their early stages. However, unlike mammalian milk, which is ‘mother’s property’, bird milk can be produced by both males and females. Because of the red crane’s feeding habits, its goose milk contains carotenoids, which makes the scene in the video appear so ‘terrifying’.
At first, I was unaware, and it really looked scary.
