Feeding newborns in Animal Kingdom

In the animal kingdom, the ways mothers feed their newborns are as varied as they are fascinating. From mammals nursing their young to birds and insects providing unique forms of sustenance, feeding behaviors play a critical role in ensuring the survival of the next generation. Here are some of the most intriguing and unique examples of how animals feed their newborns.

Mammals: milk and beyond

Mammals are known for their defining trait: nursing their young with milk. However, the way this nourishment is provided can vary greatly across species.

Whales and Dolphins

Marine mammals like whales and dolphins nurse their young underwater, a feat that requires precise coordination. The mother squirts milk directly into the calf’s mouth, as the baby lacks the ability to suckle in water. Whale milk is incredibly rich and fatty, allowing the calf to grow rapidly in the first few months of life.

Bats

Bats may seem unlikely candidates for gentle care, but bat mothers are incredibly nurturing. They nurse their pups while hanging upside down, often carrying their babies with them while flying in search of food. The milk from a bat is rich in nutrients, allowing the pups to grow quickly.

Birds and crop milk

Birds may not produce milk like mammals, but they have their own incredible ways of feeding their chicks.

Pigeons and Doves

These birds produce a substance called “crop milk,” a nutrient-rich secretion that they feed to their chicks. Both male and female pigeons can produce this milk, which is created in the crop (a specialized part of the digestive system). Crop milk is packed with fats and proteins, essential for the rapid growth of pigeon chicks.

Flamingos

Like pigeons, flamingos also produce crop milk, but theirs is pink! The bright color comes from carotenoids in their diet. Both parents feed the chicks this pink milk for the first few weeks after hatching. The milk provides essential nutrients and helps the chicks grow strong before they start foraging for themselves.

Insects: special food for special offspring

Insects, too, have evolved remarkable methods of feeding their young, especially in species with complex social structures like bees, ants, and termites.

Honeybees

Worker bees feed the larvae in the hive with a substance known as “royal jelly,” a secretion from glands in their heads. Royal jelly is packed with nutrients and is especially given to larvae that are destined to become queens. Regular worker larvae are weaned onto honey and pollen after a few days, but the queen larvae continue to feast on royal jelly until they pupate.

Ants

Some ant species feed their larvae by regurgitating food, much like birds. Others, such as leafcutter ants, cultivate fungus gardens inside their nests. They feed pieces of chewed leaves to the fungus, which in turn provides sustenance for the ant larvae.

Fish and Amphibians

Fish and amphibians have their own creative ways of ensuring their offspring are well-fed.

Mouth-Brooding Fish

Some species of fish, like the cichlid, practice mouth brooding, where the parent (often the father) carries the fertilized eggs and even young fry in their mouths to protect and nourish them. The young are safe from predators and can swim out to explore, returning to the parent’s mouth when danger is near.

Poison Dart Frogs

These colorful frogs of the Amazon basin exhibit unique feeding behavior. After the eggs hatch, the female carries her tadpoles to small water pools in bromeliads (a type of plant). She returns periodically to feed the tadpoles unfertilized eggs, which are packed with nutrients to help the young grow into adult frogs.

Spiders and Arachnids

In certain species, spider mothers lay unfertilized eggs or produce special nutrient-rich fluids to feed their spiderlings. In extreme cases, as seen in the spider species Stegodyphus, the mother sacrifices her own body. After giving birth, the mother liquefies her insides, allowing the young to feed on her as their first meal – an ultimate act of maternal sacrifice.