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--Boundary_(ID_GGBQ4na0yYXP9i6c7dW3PQ) Content-type: text/plain; CHARSET=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT This sounds very much like "anting", a well-known behaviour of a variety of birds. When indulging it this behaviour, individual birds find an ant nest and purposely sit or lie on it with various posturing and acting as if high on drugs, some say or imagine, while grabbing individual ants and not eating them but applying them to various parts of their plumage. As far as I know, the actual function of this behaviour is purely speculation, but it's possible that it just feels good, and/or the ants remove ectoparasitic mites or fleas from the feathers, and/or the formic acid from the ants acts like a repellent to those ectoparasites for a while? More comments, please? Cheers from Jim in Wolfville Begin forwarded message: > From: Nancy Roberts <nancy.roberts@ns.sympatico.ca> > Date: June 22, 2010 1:44:55 PM ADT > To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca > Subject: Re: [NatureNS] crow behaviour > Reply-To: naturens@chebucto.ns.ca > > Was this crow deliberately stirring up the ants to get more to come > out of the ground? > > Nancy > > Nancy Roberts Design > Celebrating 17 years of making you look GOOD > > Dartmouth, NS B2Y 2X6 > 902 461-9488 > > > > On 22-Jun-10, at 12:16 PM, Pat wrote: > >> Hi, >> >> Has anyone heard of this? One of the resident crows here this >> morning was squirming with wings flattened out on the ground, >> flicking its body and wings, pecking at its chest - all the while >> sitting on an ant bed, eating ants at the same time. It would >> then get up and stand and still eat ants. >> >> Patricia Dix >> Greenwich NS > --Boundary_(ID_GGBQ4na0yYXP9i6c7dW3PQ) Content-type: text/html; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable <html><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; = -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "> This sounds very much like "anting", a well-known behaviour of a variety = of birds. When indulging it this behaviour, individual birds find = an ant nest and purposely sit or lie on it with various posturing and = acting as if high on drugs, some say or imagine, while grabbing = individual ants and not eating them but applying them to various parts = of their plumage. As far as I know, the actual function of this = behaviour is purely speculation, but it's possible that it just feels = good, and/or the ants remove ectoparasitic mites or fleas from the = feathers, and/or the formic acid from the ants acts like a repellent to = those ectoparasites for a while? More comments, = please?<div><br></div><div>Cheers from Jim in = Wolfville<br><div><br><div>Begin forwarded message:</div><br = class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type=3D"cite"><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: #000000"><b>From: = </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px = Helvetica">Nancy Roberts <<a = href=3D"mailto:nancy.roberts@ns.sympatico.ca">nancy.roberts@ns.sympatico.c= a</a>></font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: = #000000"><b>Date: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">June 22, 2010 1:44:55 PM = ADT</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: = #000000"><b>To: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica"><a = href=3D"mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca">naturens@chebucto.ns.ca</a></font>= </div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: = 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: = #000000"><b>Subject: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica"><b>Re: [NatureNS] crow = behaviour</b></font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: = 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" color=3D"#000000" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica; color: = #000000"><b>Reply-To: </b></font><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" = style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica"><a = href=3D"mailto:naturens@chebucto.ns.ca">naturens@chebucto.ns.ca</a></font>= </div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: = 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><br></div> <div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; ">Was this crow deliberately stirring up the ants to = get more to come out of the ground?</div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: = 14px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Nancy</div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Nancy = Roberts Design</div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Celebrating 17 years of making = you look GOOD</div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; ">Dartmouth, NS B2Y 2X6</div><div style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">902 = 461-9488</div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; = min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">On