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This Hi-Tech Bird Feeder Lets Clever Magpies Exchange Bottle Caps for Food (mymodernmet.com)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

14 comments fedilink hide all child comments

This is clever. But in a way, it's also shifting the environmental impact from these bottle caps. I can't imagine under which conditions the birds' may be a problem (e.g. getting too much food). Maybe someone with better knowledge on these species can tell if there could be a downside (no matter how improbable, just the risk of X). Such risk may include the interaction through second or third organisms (e.g. lack of seed spread, abundance of parasitic prokaryotr, etc.)

Biological question aside, anyway... This is so cool! I'd like to try building one myself ;)

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[–] [email protected] 24 points 3 months ago (2 children)

I wish I knew enough Fallout lore to make a joke about this.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

Gary!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

Man, I'd kill for a sunset sasparilla.

[–] Wytch 16 points 3 months ago

OK but how can you tell if the caps they turn in are actual litter and not from bottles they bought themselves? Seems like an easy system to exploit

[–] [email protected] 14 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Can't find it now but I recall a documentary where they did exactly the same thing but trained the birds to bring real money coins.

Somehow they got coins from somewhere to pay for food.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I swear I saw it with cigarette buts.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago

I remember seeing that, too.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

How neat! I'm also curious about the impacts of this type of thing like you mentioned. Hopefully it's a net positive. 🤞 It's a super cool concept! Thanks for sharing it here!

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (2 children)

I was expecting we'd have robots do this in the future but if birds can do it instead then it's cool with me

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

Of course, some might say there's no difference

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago

Becase we know that er're too stupid to do it for sure

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

Oh this is so neat!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

Planning for the future! Smart!