What enduring characteristic allowed the lineage of modern magpies to persist across vast timescales?
Answer
Behavioral flexibility and adaptable, omnivorous diets
The text highlights that modern magpies exhibit behavioral flexibility, supported by their adaptable, omnivorous diets, which allows them to consume everything from insects and small vertebrates to seeds and even human refuse. This capacity to adjust feeding habits and survive in varied environments is proposed as the key reason why the lineage has managed to persist successfully across immense geological timescales, weathering shifting climates and changing pressures over millions of years.
Related Questions
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