"Mommy, What Is That?" – A Tale About Bird Poop, Recycling, and Sustainability

One morning, I was observing nature. A mother bird flew in with a big bug in her beak and lovingly fed it to her chick. Right after, the baby bird let out a “plop!” and pooped. Then, in a surprising move, the mother bird turned around and ate the poop.

I paused. “What was that?!” I thought.
But then I started to reflect…
Is this just bird behavior—or a lesson in sustainability straight from nature?

Supermom Saves the Nest: The Mother Bird as a Hygiene Hero

The first reason the mother bird does this is deeply maternal: cleanliness.
If the chick’s poop stays in the nest, over time it attracts bacteria, parasites, and unwanted guests (yes, even predators).
The mother bird eliminates this biological hazard.
It’s like taking out the trash at home—just… a little more directly.

Recycling 101: Don’t Waste the Nutrients in Poop

The baby bird’s digestive system is still immature. So, it can’t fully digest the nutrients from the bug.
Which means?
Poop = a partially digested, protein-rich snack!
The mother bird is simply staying loyal to nature’s principle: “Nothing should go to waste.”
It’s actually a kind of organic recycling system.

Sustainability: What Does It Really Mean? This. Exactly This.

If birds recycle their poop, then maybe we should question why we are still so hooked on single-use products.
A mother bird doesn’t use plastic.
She chooses what she consumes carefully.
She manages her waste.
And most importantly: she only takes what she needs.

If we lived as sustainably as birds do, maybe our planet wouldn’t be in such poor health.

Laugh, But Also Think: Waste or Resource?

Many living beings treat their waste as a resource:

• Worm poop is one of the most fertile fertilizers.
  
  

• Cow manure powers biogas systems.
  
  

• Even human waste, when treated, can be reused in agriculture.
  
  

There’s no such thing as “waste”—only resources that haven’t found their place yet.
Birds know this.
Nature already operates this way.
Now it’s our turn.

The Bottom Line: Think Like the Birds

Sure, it might have been a bit of a stomach-turning scene…
But nature was giving us a giant, obvious lesson:
Don’t dismiss waste—try to understand it.
Question your consumption.
And never forget that everything is part of a cycle.

And maybe, just maybe…
Sometimes, we need to look at poop and say,
“Whoa. That’s genius.”