Distraction displays, also known as deflection display, diversionary display or paratrepsis, are anti-predator behaviours used to attract the attention of an enemy away from an object, typically the nest or young, that is being protected. They are particularly well known in birds but noted also in fish. Distraction displays are however not very well defined and the definition has been the subject of much debate. They are sometimes classed more generically under "nest protection behaviours" along with aggressive displays such as mobbing

Mobbing

Mobbing in the context of human beings either means bullying of an individual by a group in any context. Identified as emotional abuse in the workplace, such as "ganging up" by co-workers, subordinates or superiors, to force someone out of the workplace through rumor, innuendo, intimidation,...

.

It has been suggested that distraction displays exist mainly in birds since they have the ability to escape at the last moment out of reach of ground predators. Displays are used mainly for ground predators and rarely used against avian predators.

Several variations are known in these distraction displays. Nesting male three-spined stickleback

Three-spined stickleback

The three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus, is a fish native to much of northern Europe, northern Asia and North America. It has been introduced into parts of southern and central Europe.-Distribution and morphological variation:...

s when approached by groups of conspecifics will move away from the nest and simulate feeding on the substrate. Adults will feed on the eggs of nesting conspecifics.

False brooding is an approach used by plovers. The bird moves away from the nest site and crouches on the ground so as to appear to be sitting at a nest and allows the predator to approach close before escaping.

Injury feigning is one of the more common forms of distraction. The broken-wing display is particularly well known in nesting waders and plovers and doves such as the Mourning Dove

Mourning Dove

The Mourning Dove is a member of the dove family . The bird is also called the Turtle Dove or the American Mourning Dove or Rain Dove, and formerly was known as the Carolina Pigeon or Carolina Turtledove. It is one of the most abundant and widespread of all North American birds...

. Birds that are at the nest walk away from the nest with one wing hung low and dragging on the ground so as to appear as an easy target for a predator. Several interpretations have been made for the evolution of the behaviour and the cognitive abilities

Animal cognition

Animal cognition is the title given to the study of the mental capacities of non-human animals. It has developed out of comparative psychology, but has also been strongly influenced by the approach of ethology, behavioral ecology, and evolutionary psychology...

 involved.

Another display is the rodent run which is seen in plovers as well as some passerine

Passerine

A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...

 birds. Here the nesting bird drops to the ground or moves away creeping along with the head held low and making turns as if dodging imaginary obstacles.

Costs

If a signal is not honest, predators can quickly learn to ignore distraction displays. Distraction displays have their cost and displaying adult birds are sometimes captured by the predator being distracted or by other opportunist predators.

External links

• The Birder's Handbook