An international team of scientists has discovered a completely unexpected pattern: urban birds more often fly away from approaching women sooner than from men!
The researchers observed 37 bird species (tits, sparrows, blackbirds, magpies, pigeons, etc.) in five European countries (Czechia, France, Germany, Poland, Spain).
It turned out that men, on average, could approach the birds about a metre closer before the birds took flight.
Moreover, the experiment participants were selected so that their height and clothing were comparable.
The male and female observers were specially matched by height and clothing, walked in the same way (straight ahead, at a constant speed, without looking away).
On average, men could approach about 1 metre closer, before the bird flew away (average distance: ~7,5 m for men and ~8,5 m for women).
The effect held in all countries and in almost all species.
The scientists themselves write that the cause is still unknown. There are hypotheses (peculiarities of gait, smell, silhouette, some barely perceptible signals), but none of them has yet been confirmed.
Scientists do not yet know why birds react in this particular way. It may be due to peculiarities of gait, smells or other signals.
It seems pigeons have long known what men do not understand: if a woman is decisively heading your way, it is better to step aside in advance! π
