Birds are experts in eating spicy food! Why are they not afraid of spicy food?

There are many interesting phenomena hidden in the colorful nature, and birds eating peppers is one of them. Walking in the countryside, you can often see traces of being pecked on the peppers drying outdoors, and the pepper plants in the fields are also "visited" by birds. In contrast, other animals mostly avoid peppers. This strange scene can't help but make people think deeply: Are birds born with the ability to "resist spicy food"? The answer lies in the unique physiological structure of birds and the long-standing co-evolutionary process between them and peppers.

To solve the mystery of why birds are not afraid of spicy food, we must first have a deep understanding of the mystery of taste perception. The reason why humans and most mammals can feel the burning sensation brought by peppers is the interaction between taste receptors in the mouth and capsaicin. Capsaicin is the "chemical weapon" used by peppers to resist mammals from eating it. When it comes into contact with a specific receptor on the tongue of mammals, the vanilloid receptor subtype 1 (TRPV1), it triggers a series of nerve signal transmissions. After receiving it, the brain interprets it as a special pain sensation of "spicy", which makes the eater feel strongly uncomfortable and then stay away from peppers.

However, the taste system of birds is very different from that of mammals. In the long process of evolution, the tongues of birds have not evolved receptors that can specifically bind to capsaicin. This means that when birds peck at peppers, capsaicin cannot set off a "taste storm" like in mammals, and birds naturally will not experience the burning pain. For birds, peppers are just a kind of food with bright appearance and different textures, just like the dazzling array of fruits on supermarket shelves. They peck at them instinctively just to get the nutrients contained in them. When they peck at peppers, they may pay more attention to the fullness of the fruit and the abundance of juice, and they are completely unaware of the "hot and boiling" taste in the human mouth. This difference in taste makes birds fearless when facing peppers and freely include them in their recipes.

From the perspective of peppers, it is no accident that birds have become their "guests of honor". In fact, there is a subtle game of co-evolution hidden behind it. Under the law of survival in nature, the key to plant reproduction is the effective spread of seeds. Peppers are well aware of the powerful chewing and digestive functions of mammals. Once the seeds fall into their stomachs, they are likely to "die" in the grinding and strong acid environment of the stomach and intestines, making it difficult to achieve the mission of spreading.

Therefore, peppers took a different path in their evolution and chose to work hand in hand with birds. Birds have no teeth and usually swallow food whole, so pepper seeds are basically unharmed when passing through the digestive system of birds. Moreover, birds have excellent flying ability and a vast range of activities. During migration and foraging, they inadvertently carry the pepper seeds they swallowed to distant places and excrete them with feces, providing an excellent opportunity for peppers to open up new "colonies".

In this way, peppers "treat" birds with nutritious fruits, and birds act as "couriers" for pepper seeds. The two are interdependent and each takes what it needs, together sketching a natural picture of harmonious symbiosis, becoming a classic example of co-evolution of ecosystems. When peppers mature, the red peppers swaying on the branches seem to be extending a warm invitation to the passing birds, and the birds also understand and fly among them, starting a relay of life, allowing the genes of peppers to continue in a wider world.

In actual natural observations and scientific research, many examples have provided strong evidence for the habit of birds eating peppers. In some ecological reserves, researchers have noticed that when peppers are ripe, flocks of birds frequently shuttle through the pepper fields, like a lively feast.

For example, the red cardinals, which are common in North America, have bright red feathers and have a special liking for peppers, which are also red in color. Through long-term fixed-point observations, researchers have found that red cardinals will accurately peck through the skin of peppers with their sharp beaks and suck the flesh and juice inside. Even if they are surrounded by other grains and fruits, peppers are still a popular choice in their diet. The red cardinals jump and forage among the pepper plants, as if they are selecting the most favorite delicacy. The interweaving of red and green constitutes a unique landscape in the reserve.

For example, in the forests of tropical areas, there is a unique interaction between hummingbirds and small pepper plants. Hummingbirds are small in size, and their wings vibrate at high speed when flying, making a buzzing sound, just like elves. They use their slender beaks to penetrate deep into the stamens of peppers to suck nectar, and in the process, they also do not forget to peck at the fresh pepper fruits around them. Because hummingbirds have a very high metabolic rate, the sugar and a small amount of protein in pepper fruits can replenish their energy in time to meet the needs of high-intensity flight, so peppers occupy an important position on the foraging map of hummingbirds. They shuttle quickly between the flowers and pepper bushes, busy and orderly, injecting infinite vitality into the forests.

The behavior of birds eating chili peppers is like a stone thrown into an ecological lake, causing ripples and having far-reaching impacts on the stability and prosperity of the ecosystem in many aspects.

On the one hand, it helps the pepper population spread. As mentioned earlier, the extensive migration routes of birds are like an invisible net that spreads pepper seeds in all directions. From the edge of the humid rainforest to the dry mountainous and hilly areas, peppers rely on the power of birds to continuously expand their living territory, enrich their own genetic diversity, and enhance their ability to cope with different environmental challenges, allowing the pepper family to flourish in the plant kingdom. On the remote islands, perhaps at first there were only a few pepper seeds that were accidentally carried by birds. After years of baptism, they have now multiplied into unique pepper communities, adding a different color to the local ecology.

On the other hand, a single move affects the entire food chain, upstream and downstream. After birds eat peppers, nutrients circulate in their bodies, which in turn affects their growth and reproduction. Strong adult birds can feed their chicks more efficiently, increase the population, and provide sufficient food resources for natural enemies in the subsequent food chain; at the same time, the undigested matter in bird feces returns to the soil, nourishes the microbial community, creates a fertile foundation for plant growth, and starts a new round of material circulation and energy flow, maintaining the dynamic balance of the ecosystem. For example, the population of birds of prey that feed on birds may grow steadily as the number of birds increases, and the plants that grow in the soil due to the nourishment of bird feces provide habitats and food for small animals such as insects, which are linked together and endless.

This magical natural phenomenon also brings many inspirations to human agricultural production, ecological protection and even life concepts.

In the agricultural field, after learning about the unique role of birds in the spread of pepper seeds, some organic farms have tried to build a "bird-pepper symbiosis" model. They set up an environment suitable for birds to live and forage around the pepper planting area, such as building bird nests and planting auxiliary plants that birds like, to attract birds. This not only reduces the cost of pest control, because birds will prey on some pests, but also takes advantage of the natural spread of birds to help pepper harvests and achieve green and sustainable agricultural development. In these farms, the scene of harmonious coexistence between man and nature is staged every day, the peppers are red, the birds are happy, and the farmers are smiling.

From the perspective of ecological protection, protecting bird habitats is equivalent to protecting the hope of reproduction of many plants such as peppers. As bird homes, wetlands, forests and other ecosystems are destroyed. Under the chain reaction, plant populations such as peppers that rely on birds to spread seeds will also be in danger, which will impact the foundation of the entire ecological network. Therefore, strengthening ecological protection and creating a stable home for birds is the only way to maintain biodiversity and ensure ecological balance. When we protect those green mountains and clear waters, we are actually protecting the miracle of life created by nature for billions of years.

Returning to life, the story of birds and peppers also makes us re-examine our understanding of nature. Everything in nature has its own unique survival wisdom and mutual connection. The seemingly ordinary peppers and common birds hide the exquisite collaboration forged by billions of years of evolution. It reminds us that only by respecting nature and following the laws of nature can we live in harmony with thousands of creatures on this blue planet and continue the legendary chapter of life on Earth. In daily life, we might as well stop more often and observe these subtle but great natural interactions around us, and draw strength and wisdom from them.

In short, birds eating peppers is not a simple accidental eating behavior, but a dance of life carefully choreographed by nature. The taste secrets, evolutionary wisdom and ecological philosophy contained in it continue to illuminate the way forward for humans to explore nature and understand the true meaning of life. Let us walk into this wonderful feast of life with awe for nature and explore more unknown wonders.