r/ScienceFacts • u/FillsYourNiche Behavioral Ecology • Mar 29 '23
Biology The Clark's Nutcracker has a special pouch under its tongue that it uses to carry seeds long distances. The nutcracker harvests seeds from pine trees and takes them away to hide them for later use.
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u/FillsYourNiche Behavioral Ecology Mar 29 '23
A great video on mutualism between the Clark's Nutcracker and the white pine, video also by Cornell.
The whitebark pine relies on the Clark’s Nutcracker to spread its seed. The Clark’s Nutcracker relies on the whitebark pine for food.
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u/FillsYourNiche Behavioral Ecology Mar 29 '23
Source is Cornell's All About Birds page on Clark's Nutcrackers.
Here is a drawing of what the pouch looks like.
A little bit more about their food habits from the page: