Watch out...Ive been thinking.....

[Diane]

Ive been watching my gouldian young and the different ways they interact with their parents and the other adult gouldians in the aviary. What struck me was the way the young can tell immediately the difference between their parents and any other bird with the same head/body colour. Then my mind starting drifting to the research done by Dr Sarah Pyke on the gouldian hens "playing away from home" based on the hens being able to tell the genes from a particular bird are better, and also the other research regarding pairing of same head colours.
I know that birds see in the ultra violet range and I was thinking this would be a significant factor.
There must be some sort of distinguishing marks that show up in the ultra violet range that the birds can see otherwise in the case of the young they would be begging at every RH PC GB not just at the parent RH PC GB.

[Jayburd]

That is an interesting thought... maybe for those with more than 1pr of gouldians per aviary, it' be a good way of determining who's young are whose...

[Diane]

maybe for those with more than 1pr of gouldians per aviary, it' be a good way of determining who's young are whose...

I used the terms "parent" loosely.

With the research done about the hens "male shopping" all you can really be sure of is that particular cock bird was the one going in the nest and feeding the young when it first opened its eyes.

[rey2pokey]

That is rather interesting.

[jusdeb]

Vaguely recall something on Nat Geo about ultra violet feathers and how birds that look the same to us look different under a UV light . Makes you wonder how black and white penguins , gulls etc go to sea for days and still manage to find their young , they say noise recognition ...thousands of hungry chicks screaming at once and they find their own off spring.