What is it with birds and hot chili peppers?

[Darth_Kitten]

Man, those things are HOT, yet birds seem to love them. :)

[Blue Gardener]

1. Birds don't have taste buds

That's why you can use capsaicin in your bird feeders to keep the sqirrels from eating the seed.

[Darth_Kitten]

2. don't they any taste buds?

:)

What makes them prefer certain foods over others?

[Darth_Kitten]

3. I found an interesting link

http://parrotisland.mainsecureserver.com/catalog/article_info.php?articles_id=19

Funny thing was, I tried one of the hot chili peppers I bought for Murphee, she eats them non-chalantly, I'm running for water to drink! :)

[Digit]

4. Kissing can be painful and other birdie fun

I had given my Grey some jalapeno peppers with her veggies and my daughter let the bird kiss her on the lips. You should have been there. Evidently, it was about as painful as if she had touched the pepper directly to her lips.

[Blue Gardener]

5. Took a class in critter control for Master Gardener program

The professor from Iowa State University told us about the bird thing. Here's an article I found about birds and capsaicin.
http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mchili.html

This is a good website for determining seed preferences for different birds. Not sure of all the reasons why certain birds prefer certain foods.
http://www.birdfeeding.org/

[Kat45]

6. I think it's at least partly if they like what it looks like.

I know a bird who refuses to eat anything orange, another bird who's afraid of red and doesn't eat any red foods. :shrug:

[Stepup2]

7. Crazy isn't it

my senegal will throw a fit, scream, and flail if a "killer" strawberry appears in her bowl. Yet she will grab a whole habenero and eat the entire thing. I watch out for "kisses" when she has finished a pepper; I learned the hard way once...

[Ladyhawk]

8. Parrots do.

Birds in the parrot family have taste buds, but theirs are different from ours. Parrots are one of the few bird families that do have taste buds. You can even see them. They are the spiky protrusions on the base of the parrot's tongue. :)

"Birds possess fewer taste buds than humans do, so they are equipped to enjoy strong flavors that seem unpleasant to us. Thus, contrary to popular belief, a flavorless diet of pellets is not an ideal one for birds whose taste buds appreciate penetrating flavors rather than subtle ones. Anyone who has seen parrots devouring raw peppers or unsweetened fresh cranberries can attest to this fact."

http://www.holisticbirds.com/Hbn02/autumn02/pages/foodpp3.htm

[Darth_Kitten]

9. I'm glad parrots can enjoy their food.

One of the pleasures of life is tasting good food! :)