2015 Mother's Day Special

Since today is Mother's Day, I will go ahead and tell you some interesting facts about different species and how they raise their young.


The first species today will be the Emu, a large flightless bird from Australia.

As you can see in the image, Emu eggs are fairly large and a dark green color. But did you know that they start out light in coloration? They actually get darker as they incubate. Another interesting fact is that the females don't have anything to do with the young. They lay the eggs in a nest built by the male, then leave to do their own thing. It is actually the males who incubate and raise the young!

http://animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/emu

The next animal is a chicken! Yes, you read that right. 

Chickens are very dedicated mothers. And as is known to even take on another species' young entirely!

Have you ever heard that eggshells are pure calcium? You would be correct! The hen needs to eat a lot of calcium-rich food to keep it up. Did you know that if she doesn't eat enough, her body will actually dissolve her own bones to produce the shells? Talk about dedication!

The next animal is fairly well known. The cuckoo!

These birds usually don't even take care of their young at all! The female will go about, laying her eggs in other birds' nests. This leaves her with time to feed herself and not worry about young.

There are some pretty unique moms out there!