Playing the fool
Above: Playing the fool
Above: Playing the fool
Above: Playing the fool
Above: Playing the fool
Above: Rare sight in Sussex
Sussex Life
The origins of April Fool’s Day take us back to 1582 and the introduction of the Gregorian Calendar when New Year’s Day was moved from April to January. Those who chose not to recognise the new calendar were labelled ‘fools’ and made the butt of practical jokes, ridiculed or sent on ‘fools errands’. In the 21st Century practical jokes are still very much in vogue with elaborate tricks being played, not only on family and friends, but on the entire nation with television, radio stations and newspapers joining in the fun, trying to ‘gull’ the public. However, in the wild, animals have been using guile and trickery since the dawn of time to ensure their survival.
Making an impression
Starlings are great mimics and often confuse other creatures, including humans, with their accurate impersonations of other birds or impressions of everyday items including mobile phones ring tones. Their purpose in mimicking is to show off their great vocal range in an attempt to attract females during the mating season.
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Crafty cuckoos
Cuckoos do not build their own nests but simply lay one egg in the nest of another species, leaving it to be hatched and their chick raised by surrogate parents. This reed warbler, pictured right, is feeding a cuckoo chick because it thinks it is its own young. Females can lay up 20 eggs during the season and will exactly replicate the egg of the chosen host species. If the cuckoo chick is of similar size to the host’s own offspring they tend to be reared together but where the cuckoo baby is much larger it will push the other eggs or chicks from the nest to ensure it gets the undivided attention of its host parents.
Winging it!
Ringed plovers nest on sandy or shingle beaches and, like many ground nesting birds, have an almost foolproof way of protecting their eggs and young. They will attract the attention of predators by feigning a broken wing – then they move away from their vulnerable nest taking the predator with them. Then just as the predator is about to pounce, they make their escape. Although they mean no harm to the birds, nudists on Brighton Nudist Beach are often considered predators by ringed plovers who covet this beach as a prime breeding site.
Master of disguise
The Buff Tip moth is a master of disguise and imitates a broken twig or peeling piece of silver birch bark to fool predators into thinking it is not edible.
Click here to read the full article in the Sussex Life digital edition
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