Coming To Their Senses Can birds smell or taste? It's an age-old
debate. By George Harrison, Contributing Editor In all my time
of studying birds, there's one topic that always elicits a
reaction—when I say birds can't smell or taste. I'm not
surprised that many people have an opinion on this subject.
After watching birds select only certain types of seeds, fruit
and suet from backyard feeders, it's difficult to believe birds
don't rely on smell or taste to determine what to eat. Even the
experts can't agree, despite more than a century of research and
debate. The results of studies in this area are often
contradictory or simply inconclusive. However, one fact is
almost certain. Birds depend less on the senses of smell and
taste than people do. Most birds have little use for the sense
of smell. The odors of food, prey, enemies or mates quickly
disperse in the wind. Birds possess olfactory glands, but
they're not well developed in most species, including the
songbirds in our backyards. The same is true for tas