There Are Amazing Fathers in the Animal Kingdom

Why treat fatherhood as a miracle? This was my question when Murphy, a bald eagle, became a viral sensation for being a great stepdad. At first, Murphy tried to incubate a rock at the World Bird Sanctuary in Valley Park, Missouri. When the sanctuary received an eaglet that had dropped out of its nest, they allowed Murphy to move from rock-sitting to actual offspring care. He did so well that the eaglet is expected to be released around Father’s Day. But have you ever seen a female eagle getting this kind of attention for raising young? Motherhood may be cherished but is taken for granted. Since we’re mammals, we view maternal care as part of life—no big deal. Paternal care, in contrast, is seen as optional and is often therefore excessively praised. In Murphy’s case, it deserves accolades, a vast online fan club, and special merchandise. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Our biased admiration for good fathers is misapplied to a species, such as the bald eagle, in which biparental care is the rule. Murphy is just doing what eagle dads have always done and what the males of many birds do every spring. They are busy feeding their young as well as their mate for as long as she incubates. Some fathers, such as eagles, partake in incubation as well. Courtesy of Stu Goz/World Bird SanctuaryMurphy the bald eagle on his rock. Finding good fathers in the animal kingdom isn’t hard, although admittedly harder than finding good mothers. The sea ho...
Source: TIME: Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: Uncategorized freelance Science society Source Type: news