While many creatures choose to steer clear of wasp nests, this bird dives right in. The wasp nest below was attacked by a bird that seemed unfazed; why is that?
A nest hanging from a tall tree was suddenly visited by a creature. The visitor was a honey buzzard. The bird did not hesitate to attack the nest despite the fierce resistance of the worker wasps.
How can this bird comfortably eat the wasp larvae inside the nest without worrying about being stung? The answer lies in its unique feathers and body structure, perfectly suited to its preference for eating wasps.
The honey buzzard has very few down feathers and is primarily covered with stiff, tightly packed feathers. This helps them avoid wasp attacks. As a result, even dangerous wasps like hornets and paper wasps fall victim to this bird.
Honey buzzard facing hornets. (Image credit: Pinterest)
This bird primarily feeds on the larvae of various wasp species. It often flies quite low to search for nests in trees or cliffs, rather than choosing other animals to prey on like other raptors.
They are also the only known natural enemy of the Asian wasp. The buzzard below, upon discovering a wasp nest, gently landed and calmly used its sharp, curved beak to eat the wasp larvae inside, all while the wasps were powerless to stop it.
The narrow nostrils, along with the small, scale-like stiff feathers on its head and the chemicals in its feathers, help protect the honey buzzard from dangerous wasps.
| Honey buzzard (scientific name: Pernis ptilorhynchus) is a species of buzzard with much smaller feathers compared to other buzzards (those that do not eat wasps) such as the Indian buzzard (scientific name: Butastur indicus) or the black kite (scientific name: Milvus migrans)… |
- Video: Snake held tightly by a hawk still struggles to bite back, painfully losing its eyes!
- Amazing scene of a giant python skillfully climbing a coconut tree
- Herd of cows leisurely heading home suddenly attacked by a tiger, with an unbelievable outcome!
- King cobra preying on a pitch-black creature in the bushes, turns out it’s a venomous species, extremely dangerous
