[Mnbird] Fecal Sacs

[Stephen Hedman]

This is a rather gross subject to intrude upon such a beautiful June (last)
morning. Skip it if you have a sensitive demeanor.

I have a robin nesting under the eve on my front porch.  The four eggs
hatched about ten days ago. There are now four gaping beaks for the two
parents to contend with.  I noticed that after mama/papa bring something
for the young to eat, they pick up a white substance that they (parents)
subsequently swallow.  This was very curious to me so did a bit of
research.  It really is a practical matter.  If you feed young birds, they
defecate.  If such remains in the nest, subsequent bacterial action could
be unhealthy for the young birds.  It turns out, at least as far as I have
been able to determine, that young birds in the nest (for certain species)
deposit their feces in a small sac.  Hence the name of "fecal sacs".  The
parents remove these sacs and indeed swallow them.

The wonders of nature never cease to amaze me.  It strikes me that the
environmental impact of eating fecal sacs is far preferable to using
disposable diapers.

Best,
Steve Hedman
St. Louis County
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