Jackdaws ditch friends to gain food but stick with family, study finds

Researchers in Cornwall find birds stick with offspring, siblings and mating partners even at risk of going hungry

Blood may be thicker than water when it comes to humans relationships - and it appears that the same is true of jackdaws after scientists found they readily switch friends to gain food but stick with family even at the risk of going hungry.

A study of jackdaw colonies in west Cornwall established that the small crows ditch old friends and make new ones if it helps them get rewards but stick with family through thick and thin.