Scientists used 'fake news' to stop predators from killing endangered birds—and the result was remarkable
Mar 2021, phys.org
Amazing; you just don't hear about olfactory camouflage much:
Odors emanating from the shorebirds' feathers and eggs attract these scent-hunting mammals, which easily find the nests.
Five weeks before the shorebirds arrived for their breeding season in 2016, we mixed the odors with Vaseline and smeared the concoction on hundreds of rocks over two 1,000-hectare study sites. We did this every three days, for three months.
The predators were initially attracted to the odors. But within days, after realizing the scent would not lead to food, they lost interest and stopped visiting the site.
via: Grant L. Norbury et al. Misinformation tactics protect rare birds from problem predators, Science Advances (2021). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abe4164
Image credit: Lord of the Rings, scene where the Black Rider sniffs and misses.
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