US EditionSeabirds only Poop While Flying, Researchers Observe
Researchers recorded 195 defecation events over 36 hours showing streaked shearwaters lose 5% of body mass per hour while flying, likely aiding ocean nutrient cycles.
- On August 18, researchers led by Leo Uesaka published a study in Current Biology reporting that streaked shearwaters defecate almost exclusively in flight off Funakoshi Ohshima Island, Japan.
- The team used tiny backward-facing cameras on 15 birds to investigate their bathroom habits and discovered they pooped every 4 to 10 minutes while flying, rarely when floating.
- The shearwaters lost about 30 grams of excrement per hour, equaling roughly 5% of their body weight, and often defecated shortly after takeoff, sometimes returning within a minute.
- Uesaka stated, "Feces are important," noting the birds’ strict excretion rhythm likely helps keep them clean, avoid predators, and may fertilize the ocean ecosystem below.
- These findings suggest flight-based defecation is a deliberate behavior with ecological implications, and Uesaka hopes further research will clarify its role in marine nutrient cycles and avian health.
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Seabirds only poop while flying
Researchers found that streaked shearwaters have strict bathroom schedules, pooping every four to 10 minutes and almost always while flying, not while floating. Credit: Yusuke Goto (CC BY-SA). New research has detected the unusual excretion rhythm of some seabirds, showing that they only poop while flying over the ocean. The research team indicates that there must be a reason why the streaked shearwater seabirds consistently excrete every 4 to 1…
·Washington, United States
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On desert islands in Japan, researchers discovered a peculiar defecation ritual among seabirds, which could help them stay clean and also fertilize the ocean.
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Total News Sources34
Leaning Left6Leaning Right4Center9Last UpdatedBias Distribution47% Center
Bias Distribution
- 47% of the sources are Center
47% Center
L 32%
C 47%
R 21%
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