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Floating among the archipelago of the “Solomon Islands” is a volcanic landmass that gives a whole new meaning to “survival of the fittest”. I am not just talking about the ugly battles between predator and prey, or the gloomy dark clouds of carbon dioxide and soot that rise over extinction level eruptions:I am talking about something unexpected, and almost disturbing: I am talking about the odd practice of abandoning helpless offspring.
I hope I have your attention…
Also known as “volcano birds”, the megapodes of the Savo Island are popular for advancing their generations in a very peculiar way. Firstly, they search for a place warm enough, either atop or beneath the volcanic ashes, and then proceed to lay their eggs.
…that’s the entire parental job. Yes ma’am, that’s ALL they do…
They do not sit over their eggs like other birds do, or even go back to the laying site to see if their littles have a chance at life. They literally just go about their day; no attachment, no care – just another good day to ease their belly of whatever was growing inside them.
The responsibility of incubation is left to the warmth of the volcano, and once the egg hatches, it learns to forage, and fly, and run, and survive … entirely on its own. –Interestingly enough, the culture of “neglect” continues when these eggs become parents themselves–.
Of course, these birds are super-precocial – born with highly developed feathers and body parts that make them adaptive from the get-go. But having come across this peculiarity on a random Sunday evening, I couldn’t help but wonder: What does the human version of this look like? And is it moral?
Obviously, we are not super-precocial species, so it will be disastrous to abandon your baby like this; unless, of course he is swaddled, placed in a basket, and on his way to the pharaoh’s palace – then I guess that works.
But from a social perspective, what is the human equivalent?
If our parents decide to do the bare minimum, you know – basic feeding, basic shelter, and maybe school fees if we are fortunate, is that good or bad? Biologically, we are not born as self-sustaining individuals, but could we be precocial in nurture. Is the emotional and psychological tenderness of parenting a responsibility, or a selfless choice that parents decide to make?
And how about our communities. Is it alright that we have evolved to – di wo fie asem – minding our individual businesses, and only sparing a thought to the next-door neighbor when they “inconvenience” us with their noise, or gossip. That we do not care whether or not our neighbor is hungry, and yet wonder why Kojo jumped the fence to steal our Christmas goat.
Many people walk the surface of the earth, “surviving on their own”.
Many are raised in houses and communities, but have no idea what a home feels like; left to their own devices to learn right from wrong; how to live and how to love; when to run and when to stop; when to prioritize themselves and when to do right by others.
Are they supposed to “find themselves” by going through life all on their own with a weak support system? Are parents who are there for their children “spoiling” their children? Are all neighbors who ask us how we’re doing just looking for gist? Where do you draw the line between neglect and allowing a child to be street wise? Where do you draw the line between abandonment and teaching your child independence? When do we say a parent or a community has failed, despite providing all the “basic cares”? And at what point do we begin to shift the “blame” to the individual egg?
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