Honeyguide chicks stab foster siblings to death
ByEd Yong
September 06, 2011
2 min read
One by one, three bee-eater chicks hatch in their underground nest, and they are all about to die. There is a fourth chick in with them, but it is no bee-eater. It is a greater honeyguide, a different species that was laid in the nest and mistakenly incubated by the bee-eater parents. Having hatched a few days ago, it has been lying in wait for its foster siblings. As each emerges in turn, the honeyguide attacks it with vicious spikes on its bill. Completely blind, it is literally stabbing in the dark but it makes up for its imprecision with brutality. Within minutes of entering the world, the other chicks are dead.
Warning: this video is not pleasant. Watch at your own risk.
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