A crisp plop is all it takes. Another piece of gum hits the ground. Have you ever stopped and wondered what happens to that little piece? There are rumors that birds mistake our discarded chews for a snack, with deadly consequences. Do you believe that? It's time to debunk the myth.

The myth from the internet

For years, two images have been floating around the Internet that contain a serious warning: chewing gum on the ground can be fatal to birds. Many have seen it, some believe it. But what's really going on?

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What the experts say about chewing gum

We have already examined the topic here and consulted experts. The result? Birds are unlikely to die from chewing gum. After consulting a veterinarian, we were confirmed that birds can distinguish between bread and chewing gum. Your instinct tells you what is edible and what is not. Even if you pick at a piece of gum, your beak might get a little sticky, but the gum doesn't enter the digestive system and therefore won't cause death.

At this point we would like to refer to our colleagues at “ Snopes.com ”. They also took up this topic in 2012 and published a statement from a zoo director:

This week, a CBS 21 News viewer has a question about a sticky situation.
Jerry from Harrisburg writes in an email to CBS 21 News Anchor Mike Parker:
“My wife says that if you throw gum on the street, a bird will eat the gum and die from it.
Will a bird attempt to eat the gum?" For the answer, we took Jerry's question to several Central Pennsylvania wildlife experts, who deal with different species of birds.
In one response, ZooAmerica (Hershey, PA) Director Troy Stump responded via email with the following:
“After careful consideration and discussion among our zoo staff, Here is our conclusion.
Chewing gum, in and of itself, is not and would not be a fatal substance for a bird to ingest and may draw some birds' interest. However, there are many variables, and we know better than to say anything could never happen. It is conceivable that a very small bird could attempt to eat a very large piece of gum. Obviously anything that might be large enough to lodge in an airway, be it bird or human, can be a problem.” Also answering Jerry's question, was Ern Tobias of Lake Tobias Wildlife Park near Halifax, Dauphin County.
Speaking to CBS 21 News over the phone, he said this about his experience with birds and gum … and monkeys: “The birds we have here at the park, it's unlikely that they would even try to eat it.
They might peck at it once or twice, and realize it's not something they want to eat. We've never had a bird die from eating gum. “The monkeys on the other hand, they do pick up gum and eat it, unfortunately.

But just like some people swallow gum, I've never seen it hurt the monkeys, either."

This week, a CBS 21 News viewer has a question about a sensitive situation.
Jerry from Harrisburg wrote in an email to CBS 21 News Anchor Mike Parker:
“My wife says if you throw gum on the street, a bird will eat the gum and die.
Will a bird try to eat the gum?" To answer the question, we forwarded Jerry's question to several central Pennsylvania wildlife experts who study various bird species.
ZooAmerica (Hershey, PA) Director Troy Stump responded via email as follows:
“After careful consideration and discussion among our zoo staff, we have come to the following conclusion.
Chewing gum is not, in and of itself, a deadly substance for a bird to ingest and may pique the interest of some birds. However, there are many variables and we cannot say that nothing can happen. It's conceivable that a very small bird could try to eat a very large piece of gum. Obviously, anything large enough to lodge in the airway can be a problem, whether it's a bird or a human. Ern Tobias of Lake Tobias Wildlife Park near Halifax, Dauphin County also responded to Jerry's question.
In a phone conversation with CBS 21 News, he said this about his experiences with birds and gum... and monkeys: "With the birds we have here in the park, it's unlikely that they would even try to eat it.
They might peck at it once or twice and then realize they don't want to eat it. We have never had a bird die from chewing gum. “The monkeys, on the other hand, pick up chewing gum and eat it, unfortunately. But just as some people swallow chewing gum, I have never seen it harm monkeys.”

Birds and their superhuman senses

Birds are not just flying creatures. With their impressive vision, which even detects UV light, they can distinguish berries from stones and, yes, bread from chewing gum.

Conclusion

Birds are amazing creatures with keen senses. The chances of them mistaking a piece of chewing gum for bread and dying from it are infinitesimal. However, we should always be aware of how our waste affects the environment and strive to dispose of it responsibly.


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Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )