• Question: what can you do to protect your young?

    Asked by heatherg to Small Red-eyed Damselfly, Fen Raft Spider, Cirl Bunting, Canada Goose, Beaver on 11 Nov 2017.
    • Photo: Canada Goose

      Canada Goose answered on 11 Nov 2017:

      We are quite loud and honk and hiss at predators, flap our wings and put ourselves between the predator an our young, we will peck and scratch with our feet. If there are many of us around, we will defend ourselves in groups.

    • Photo: Fen Raft Spider

      Fen Raft Spider answered on 12 Nov 2017:

      I am REALLY good at looking after my young. I do this by spinning them a giant silken ‘climbing frame’ where they can crawl around happily. The more spiderlings there are, the bigger the climbing frame I make. Then I just sit near by and keep guard.

    • Photo: Small Red-eyed Damselfy

      Small Red-eyed Damselfy answered on 13 Nov 2017:

      We are not that good at looking after our off spring, mainly due to the fact that we go through metamorphosis in 2 different environment. when we are young (the nymph stage) we live in the water, whereas our parents are flying above.
      However it seems that if our father is very territorial and protects his patch of the pond fiercely we have more change of survival than a father that wanders about

    • Photo: Cirl Bunting

      Cirl Bunting answered on 13 Nov 2017:

      young Cirl Bunting spend the first few weeks of their lives in a nest.
      Being a small bird, Cirl Bunting can’t really handle much of a fight so hide their nests at the base of thorny bushes.
      This makes them very hard for predators (and research ornithologists!) to find.

      Often, the adults will enter the hedge at different places and walk some way in order to not draw attention to the nest location.

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