Does Rice Make Seagulls Explode?

But there was just one problem with her advice: There is no evidence that rice poses any danger to birds. ... Forty-five percent of the students said no, and cited exploding birds as the reason. Krupa saw a teaching opportunity. He had his students test the myth as a lesson on the scientific method.

Can you feed seagulls rice?

Fact is, rice cooked or uncooked won't hurt wild birds at all. The rumor is that uncooked rice hits the bird's tummy and then swells causing its stomach to explode. It's simply not true. ... Birds eat rice during migration all the time, and they do just fine.

Is rice safe for birds?

Hard, dry rice is harmful to birds. According to ecologists, it absorbs the moisture in their stomachs and kills them. Landers said in her reply that a Connecticut legislator had recently proposed a ban on rice throwing at weddings for precisely that reason.