How Pelicans Feed Their Chicks in Tough Times
In How Pelicans Feed Their Chicks in Tough Times, narrator Sir David Attenborough takes us to Dassen Island off the coast of South Africa, where a colony of pelicans must find food for their hungry chicks during a food shortage. With limited fish along the coast, they travel to a place where gannets are raising chicks. When the gannet parents leave to find food, the pelicans take advantage of the opportunity, feeding on the chicks to bring food back to their own young. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Life, a show that explores the remarkable strategies animals and plants use to ensure their survival.
Lesson Express
Q: What does the relationship between the pelicans and gannets show us about how animals survive?
A: The pelicans and gannets are in competition for food. When the gannet parents leave to find food, the pelicans take advantage of the chance to feed on their chicks, showing how animals sometimes have to make hard choices to survive.
Q: What long-term impact might the pelicans’ actions have on the gannet population?
A: By eating the gannet chicks, the pelicans could reduce the number of gannets on the island. If this continues, it might lower the gannet population over time.
Q: How does the pelicans' V-formation help them during their flight, and why is this important for their survival?
A: The V-formation helps the pelicans reduce drag, making it easier for them to fly long distances without getting as tired. This is important because it allows them to travel farther to find food for their chicks, especially when food is scarce.
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In Explore the Life of the Manta Ray, narrator Sir David Attenborough explains how the manta ray moves through the ocean and how it feeds. This video is excerpted from BBC’s Blue Planet, a definitive documentary series diving into the mysterious depths of the sea to discover the natural history of the world’s oceans and the rarely seen marine life that reside there.