Can baby birds really imprint on humans?

Can baby birds really imprint on humans?

Precocial birds are those capable of moving around on their own soon after hatching, and it's for these birds - like geese, ducks and grouse - that imprinting is strongest.

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Published: January 17, 2023 at 11:45 am

Imprinting is a survival strategy that occurs when a newly hatched bird sees another animal and then forms a strong attachment to it. Usually, it’s the baby’s mother, but sometimes it can be an inanimate object, such as a stick, or a different animal, such as a human.

The most impressive demonstration of this has to be from Italian hang glider pilot Angelo d’Arrigo. He reared a flock of Siberian cranes under the wing of his hang glider, and then in 2003, guided them all the way from northern Siberia to the Caspian Sea in Iran; a journey of 5,500km.

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Asked by: Gary Simms, via email

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