Popular Bird Species Grows Brain Tissues To Survive Brutal Winter
NDTV
The extra brain power gives black-capped chickadee supercharged memory that allows this tiny species of bird to survive in harsh winters.
Animals have astonishing abilities, which help them survive when the circumstances are difficult. Many of them, including bears, hibernate. The state is characterised by low body-temperature, slow breathing and heart-rate, and low metabolic rate. Hibernation most commonly occurs during winter months. In case of birds, they add grow more feathers to help them stay warm and help in their migratory flight. But there is one sub-species, the palm-sized black-capped chickadee, which add brain tissue instead of feathers when they are hibernating.
This extra brain power helps the bird remember the site where it buried the food item for sustenance. When it gets hungry in the winter, the bird returns to these burial sites.
Some chickadees are able to grow the brain by nearly one-third by adding new nerve cells, enabling them to recall hundreds of spots where the food is buried.
According to National Library of Medicine (NLM) of the US government, these birds are able to achieve this incredible feat because the memory portion of their brains - the hippocampus - is designed to increase in size.
