Discover the surprising world of animal gift-giving, from scorpionflies to birds and spiders. Learn how males in various species court females with gifts of food, and the lengths some go to impress their potential mates.
We may think that gift giving is a purely human trait, but it turns out many other animals also treat their mates and companions. If on Christmas morning, upon opening your annual gift of novelty socks, your feeling is that of crushing disappointment, you can at least be thankful that you're not a female scorpionfly.from the love of your life. Far from being disappointed though, female scorpionflies relish the tasty treat, rewarding their suitors with the opportunity to mate with them.
Nuptial gift giving – when the male presents the female with a nutritious morsel during courtship and mating – has been noted in species as diverse as. Birds have been known to enjoy gift giving too, with male great grey shrikes impaling small creatures on thorns and twigs to impress mates, before offering them as, with added chemicals to make it more attractive. If the female refuses, the male simply adds more wrapping to the gift, before offering it again.by wrapping up low-quality prey, or even paltry half-consumed morsels. While the female is busy unwrapping what she thinks is a thoughtful gift, he'll mate with her and run off before she realises. One study found that as many as 70% ofNursery web spiders present a potential mate with prey wrapped up in a silk bundle – with added chemicals to make it more attractive (Credit: Getty Images) 'You do get males attempting to cheat. They might wrap up an old, dried-up leg of a cricket, or something,' says Darryl Gwynne, a behavioural ecologist at the University of Toronto in Canada.'Down the road from my house in spring there's a really beautiful thing where male dance flies go out over the river and catch aquatic insects,' says Gwynne. 'They bring it back, and females compete for the prey because they can't feed themselves, and they need this nutrition to produce their eggs. On one occasion, I saw a male come in with a ball of willow fluff that comes off the willow seed and attempt to present tha
Nature ANIMALS GIFTS COURTSHIP MATING SCORPIONFLIES BIRDS SPIDERS
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