What birds have bird's milk? Where do birds get milk? Legendary cake from the Prague restaurant

In childhood, many people asked this question when they first tried Bird’s Milk candies. But what is it really like: do birds have milk, how is it obtained, and where do candies get their name? We will answer these questions and tell you about others interesting facts in our article. Believe me, you will learn a lot of new things for yourself!

Why were the candies called “Bird's Milk”?

Children often wonder what kind of milk birds give. Adults know for sure that birds do not give any milk, and there is definitely none in candy. But it is difficult to answer where this name comes from. The treat appeared in Poland in 1936 under the name “Ptasie Mleczko”. And only in the 1960s the Rot Front factory launched production in the USSR, simply by translating “Bird's Milk” into Russian. Many then thought that the name was metaphorical and associated with something very rare and valuable, since such candies were in terrible short supply. In fact, the creators were based on old legends and works ancient Greece. They mention the milk of birds of paradise, which gives almost immortality and is considered a delicacy (ambrosia) of the Gods.

For example, in the old days, when young men wooed girls, they were asked to bring unheard-of gifts as a sign of love. The more incredible the gift, the greater the chance of winning the beauty’s heart. But, if the girl didn’t like the groom, then she asked him to get her bird’s milk. Thus, she made it clear that he had no chance of becoming her chosen one. This legend is found among many peoples. There is even a proverb: “The rich have everything, except bird’s milk.” In this way, candy manufacturers wanted to attract the attention of consumers, thereby emphasizing the value and sophistication of taste.

But do we know enough about birds to say with certainty that they cannot produce milk? Let's figure out this difficult issue together!

The whole truth about bird's milk

In fact, scientists have proven that some birds can produce milk that is completely different from what we are used to. Bird's milk consists of protein (about 60%), fat (up to 36%), a small amount of carbohydrates (up to 3%), a number of minerals and antibodies, but does not contain lactose and calcium. But like mammal milk, it contains antioxidants and immunomodulatory proteins that are important for the growth and development of young animals.

This type of milk is also called goiter or pigeon milk. This secretion is secreted by goiter cells or special glands of the esophagus and stomach (depending on the type), and resembles a yellowish cheesy mass. It is noteworthy that goiter cells respond to hormones during lactation similar to the mammary gland. The curdled substance is created from fat-filled cells (at the site of the crop, where food usually accumulates to soften before digestion), which break open and regurgitate this substance to nourish the offspring. Birds differ from other animals in that they do not have sweat glands, but they do have the ability to store fat in their outer skin cells (keratinocytes), which act as sweat glands. It was discovered that the “lactation” of birds is associated with this ability of their fat cell division. Interestingly, both males and females can feed their offspring with “bird milk”. Jelly is characteristic of representatives of the pigeon family, a number of parrots, flamingos and imperial penguins.

This process is best studied by example. pigeons. They usually lay two eggs. Soon after the chicks hatch, the parents begin to feed them nutritious milk, which begins to be produced two days before the offspring appear. After which, after a week, the chicks switch to eating crushed “adult” food, such as seeds, fruits, insects and other invertebrates. However, if one of the eggs falls out of the nest for some reason, or one chick is born dead, then the remaining chick gets all the “bird’s milk” and therefore grows even faster. By the end of the first week after hatching, this chick will hardly differ in size from its parents. And here is the female penguin lays only one egg, which the male penguin warms with the warmth of his body for two long months until the long-awaited chick appears. After the birth of the offspring, the caring father nurses it for another month and feeds it with milk along with the mother, who obtains food. U flamingo The feeding process is generally amazing. Their nutritious secretion also contains hemoglobin, which indicates the presence of bird blood in the milk, and this gives it a reddish color.

Interestingly, a number of studies were conducted in 1952 when chickens were fed pigeon milk, and their growth rate increased by as much as 38%! At the same time, attempts to reproduce goiter milk artificially did not lead to success. The chicks fed by analogue either died or were too weak. Accordingly, this nutrient has also been shown to contain certain unique antibodies.

You didn't even know that these animals also give milk

We know how important milk is for babies. This is a rich combination of nutrients that are necessary for the development of the child and his immunity. In the entire animal kingdom, only one group of animals produces milk for their offspring: mammals, to which we belong. Mammalian milk is considered to be real milk. However, some living organisms have secretions that closely resemble milk and are intended for feeding. This "false milk" is not like cow's or human milk, and it is not produced in the same way. But it serves the same purpose: it feeds baby animals until they are old enough to take care of themselves.

Cockroaches. Yes, you heard right: some cockroaches feed their young with milk. One such example is the beetle cockroach Diploptera punctata, or Pacific cockroach.
Most female cockroaches lay their eggs in a sac of sorts that comes out of their body before the eggs hatch. After the young cockroaches hatch from their eggs, they scramble to find food. But the female Pacific cockroach beetle takes a different approach to childcare. Instead of hatching from the clutch, the embryos develop entirely within her body. Once the embryos have fully formed digestive organs, they begin to drink the “milk” produced by special crystals (cells) and quickly gain weight. Because young cockroaches receive a lot of food while still in their mother's body, they are more developed and mature at the time of birth. Such interesting feature these cockroaches attracted the attention of Indian scientists. The crystals of these cockroaches turned out to contain a full range of nutrients: fats, proteins, carbohydrates and amino acids. This product It has a high calorie content, so it would be useful in conditions of overpopulation and during long-distance space flights. Researchers Now they are trying to reproduce the substance in the laboratory.

False scorpions, or false scorpions. Like Pacific beetle cockroaches, female false scorpions produce a milky-like substance. But it is not released from her womb, but from the ovaries. The female carries her fertilized eggs in a special pouch attached to her abdomen. Once the babies hatch, they remain in the sac and feed on their mother's milk. Even after they leave the pouches, they continue to ride on their mother's back until they are old enough to live on their own. Pseudoscorpions are 2-3 mm long. They are often found in rooms with dusty books, which is why they are sometimes called "book scorpions."

Discus fish. Their milk is actually a mucus-based secretion that covers the bodies of both parents. It is rich in proteins and antibodies. A few days after the young fish hatch from their eggs, they attach themselves to their parents and feed on the mucus secretions that cover their bodies. During the first two weeks, they spend most of their time feeding their young. Feeding lasts 5-10 minutes, after which one of the parents dumps the young on the other parent. From the third week, parents stop feeding. They sail for more for a long time, forcing young fish to look for other food sources. This example is very similar to how mammals care for their children.

Legless African amphibians, or caecilians (caecilia). Vertebrate amphibians are very similar to worms. Most species guard their eggs until they hatch and then abandon them. But caecilians native to southeastern Kenya have developed a more complex parenting style. When the offspring hatch from their eggs, they are completely immature and are completely dependent on their mother. To feed her children, the female caecilian produces top layer your skin is a thick layer of protein and fat. Newborns clean this layer of skin using special suction cups that look like small teeth. Layer with nutrients so dense that after a week the young individual increases in length by about 11%. This takes a huge toll on the mother. After one week of feeding, she loses about 14% of her weight.

The world around us still hides many mysteries. It would seem that it is well studied, but something new is always discovered. Did you know that some birds actually have milk?

Do birds give milk?

Pigeons feed their chicks with a special gruel secreted from the crop, which is sometimes called pigeon milk. The porridge is formed as follows. Already during brooding, in a pigeon and especially in a dove, the inner shell of the crop gradually thickens and expands, just as happens with the mammary glands of mammals before giving birth.

When the pigeon is not incubating the clutch, its crop is thin and very extensible, but by the time the chicks peck it sharply thickens with the exception of that part of it that lies on the windpipe, and its inner surface becomes irregularly checkered and equipped with a network blood vessels, in the normal state of the goiter are completely invisible. Under the influence of the activity of these vessels and strong blood circulation, the internal glands of the goiter begin to secrete a mucous whitish liquid. It mixes with the thick porridge regurgitated by the pigeon from the anterior stomach into the crop. The opening of the stomach, located near the crop itself, is surrounded by ring-shaped strong muscles that can make the opening narrower or wider. An opening adjusted in this way can allow food of the required consistency to pass back into the bird's crop.

The regurgitated porridge, consisting of crushed grains, passes from the anterior stomach into the crop, where it mixes with the milky liquid secreted by the glands of the crop. After such mixing, the thick grain porridge becomes liquid and digestible, thus the action of the liquid secreted by the crop is similar to the action of saliva in mammals.

If in the first days the chicks receive only a thin gruel, then after 3-4 days the parathyroid muscles slightly widen the opening and the pigeons, in addition to the previously received food, are offered particles of highly softened grains the size of a hemp seed and a very small amount of grains of sand.

Approximately on the ninth or tenth day, feeding porridge from the stomach stops; now it is produced directly from the crop with softened food with a large addition of water. Then, every day, the pigeons spend less and less time swelling the grains in the crop. Finally, at three weeks of age, they feed the chicks immediately after they themselves have eaten and drunk. During all this time, the activity of the thymus glands does not stop, but gradually decreases and the product of their activity becomes invisible when large quantities indigestible food and water received by the chicks at this time.

The ability of pigeons to produce porridge is not related to a specific period of incubation; it manifests itself completely arbitrarily, as soon as the need arises. This can be confirmed by following examples. In practice, it often happens that pigeons are given already hatched eggs and thus do not sit in the nest for the allotted time. However, the hatched chicks are fed completely normal liquid porridge. Another example, pigeons were allowed to incubate the clutch for 21 days and after that they placed already grown chicks from other birds. In this case, the young animals received from the crop foster parents not porridge, but their proper slimy grain food.

And one more example. Sometimes a couple does not lay eggs, but sits in an empty nest. If you place already hatched eggs on such pigeons, then the chicks that hatched before this pair sat for the allotted 17-19 days still very often receive the food they are entitled to.

However, when replacing chicks in pigeons, strangers can only be replaced with ones of the same age or slightly older. If the nested chicks are younger, they will receive from their adoptive parents rougher food that is not typical for their age instead of liquid food and will die as a result. If you place older pigeons in the nest, then such food will not harm them at all, if not beneficial.

Thus, due to a short or longer incubation of eggs or even an empty nest, the pigeon’s glands are excited and, with the subsequent regurgitation of food from the stomach, are automatically activated, secreting the said milk. The latter is not food itself, but only dilutes the crushed food, giving it better digestibility. It is interesting that the pigeon's crop changes in the same way as that of the dove, despite the fact that it sits in the nest three times smaller.

When feeding chicks, it is necessary to ensure that adult pigeons receive nutritious food containing vitamins and minerals. minerals. Special attention attention should be paid to the presence of coarse sand and the smallest stones in the dovecote. It must be borne in mind that it is difficult to obtain well-developed young animals on grain feed alone, regardless of its quality. On the contrary, with a small amount of similar food with the above additives, young pigeons develop much faster.

If one of the parents disappears while feeding the offspring, then the chicks, which are not yet nine days old, usually die of starvation. To avoid this, they must be seated in other nests. Nine to ten-day-old chicks can be fed by one male without a dove, but in a similar situation the chicks of a female run the risk of starving to death. Starting from about two weeks of age, pigeons are in most cases fed by either parent. But in such a situation, artificial feeding is required from the pigeon breeder, otherwise the development of the young animals is somewhat delayed. But even in this case, the pigeon will eventually take its toll from under strong parents.

This dessert is probably adored by everyone who remembers the times of the Union. Fortunately, modern sweet tooths also have the opportunity to try Bird's Milk. Everything about this dessert is perfect: the most delicate soufflé, chocolate icing with an expressive taste, appetizing appearance, and in the case of the cake, also a soft sponge cake. The name itself is associated not just with a treat; for many it is a symbol of the era.

But why is "Bird's milk" called "bird's milk"? Surely this question has puzzled everyone at least once.

The first swallows

Many people know that the Poles were the pioneers. It was in Poland, at the E. Wedel factory, that these sweets were first produced back in 1936. The filling was similar in composition to marshmallows, but did not contain eggs.

One day the minister tried Polish sweets "Bird's Milk" light industry THE USSR. He liked them so much that the country’s leadership set the confectioners the task of developing an analogue.

Origins of the name

Answering the question of why “Bird's milk” is called “bird’s milk”, it is worth looking not even at 1936, but at even earlier times. In medieval European folklore, a very common plot is in which an insidious beauty sends an unlucky suitor in search of bird's milk. Drawing analogies, we can mention the Slavic image of a fern flower and the fabulous “I don’t know what.” Of course, the gentleman had to either return with nothing or perish, because there is no bird’s milk in nature. In any case, in medieval Europe he definitely wasn't there.

But there are even more ancient references. They will also help us figure out why “Bird's milk” is called “bird’s milk”. The ancient Greeks believed that birds of paradise fed their babies with milk. If a person has a chance to try this delicacy, he will become invincible, strong and healthy, and will remain youthful for many years.

In Rus' there was a proverb that said that a rich man has everything except bird's milk. It was implied that some things (friendship, health, love) cannot be bought with money, no matter how rich a person is.

As we can see, in many cultures there were legends that birds could give milk. And everywhere it was associated with unearthly pleasure, benefits, treasure. It is not surprising that Polish confectioners gave their creation this tempting name.

Since 1967, the production of sweets began in the USSR. Unusual name it was decided to leave. By that time it had already gained fame and people's love. Why is "Bird's milk" called "bird's milk" Soviet people, maybe he thought about it, but he certainly wasn’t surprised. Apparently, the memory of generations worked: the dessert evoked strong associations with an outlandish delicacy, a fabulous pleasure, a feast of taste.

Polish manufacturers kept the production technology and composition of Bird's Milk secret. Therefore, their Soviet colleagues had to work hard to create something similar in taste. The most interesting thing in this story is that the name misled Soviet technologists: they were sure that it was due to the presence of eggs in the candy filling. In fact, eggs have nothing to do with the name. But if they were not present in Polish sweets, today they are present in many desserts of the same name.

Unique component

But the confectioners did not set out to completely repeat the recipe. On the contrary, they went their own way. The specialists of the factory in Vladivostok used not only their professionalism, but also their wealth native land. Instead of gelatin, it was decided to use agar-agar, extracted from Far Eastern algae. It was this factory that was the first to launch the production of new items. The recipe has been registered.

The second factory was Rot Front. And after some time, other confectionery enterprises in all parts of the country, including the famous “Red October”, joined in implementing the plan.

Today, Vladivostok candies “Bird's Milk” are considered the best. In a three-hundred-gram box, the buyer will find candies with three different flavors (chocolate, lemon and cream), which can be stored for no more than 15 days. They still contain healthy agar-agar.

Legendary cake from the Prague restaurant

The success of the candies also inspired culinary experts. Vladimir Guralnik forever inscribed his name in the history of sweets, because it was he who developed the recipe for the Bird's Milk cake in the early 80s. Conjuring the ingredients, the master initially decided that he would also use agar-agar. The composition also included egg whites, powdered sugar, and water. And the base was an airy sponge cake.

The number of orders grew exponentially. If at the very beginning only visitors to the Moscow restaurant “Prague” could taste the delicacy, then after a few months the shop was also open for takeaway.

It was difficult to scare a Soviet person with a queue, and therefore the workers calmly lined up for the secret cake, taking their places before dark. Eyewitnesses of those times recall that the tail of the queue often bent towards the neighboring Old Arbat. The Bird's Milk cake recipe has been officially approved. Violation of recommended standards was prosecuted by law.

"Bird's milk" today

Bird's Milk candies are still produced today. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, not all manufacturers adhere to the original Far Eastern recipe. Expensive agar-agar is often replaced with gelatin, and preservatives are used to extend shelf life. But there is an advantage to this: the price of some types of “Bird's milk” is very low. You can find both loose sweets and packaged in beautiful boxes.

No less popular are cakes, pastries, and Bird's Milk soufflé, which today many housewives have learned to prepare on their own.

Which bird feeds its chicks blood?

There is another version of this legend. During a terrible famine, the pelican killed its children out of despair. But then he looked at what he had done, was horrified and, deciding to commit suicide, tore his chest with his beak. The pelican's blood fell on the dead chicks, after which they miraculously came to life.

Legends about a pelican saving chicks with its blood have spread throughout the world. On the coats of arms of antiquity, this bird was depicted turned half-turn, so that one could see how the pelican was tearing its chest and blood was pouring from there. The pelican emblem was depicted on the buttons of a pre-revolutionary gymnasium teacher...

Not a single ornithological study has been found that describes a pelican tearing its chest.

Most likely, the source of the legend about onocrotal was this: The pelican often tidies up its feathers, and this gave rise to the legend that it feeds its chicks with its own blood. Many pelicans are colored White color, however, during the mating season, males develop pinkish feathers on their chest. Perhaps, when the bird fingered its “robe” with its beak, the pink feathers became more noticeable and resembled traces of blood.

There is another version of the origin of the legend. While the chicks are not yet grown, the mother (occasionally the father) feeds them with semi-digested fish from her stomach. The parent pelican deeply grips the baby's head in such a way that the baby's beak ends up in the esophagus, after which the food is regurgitated and enters the chick's stomach. In fact, the pelican feeds the children with itself, which could serve as a source for the legend.

On all kinds of emblems, the pelican is always depicted with an odd number of chicks. It is believed that this also symbolizes undivided love, compassion and participation. However, here too the legend does not correspond to real pelican life. In fact, the usual family of this bird is similar in composition to a human family, it consists of a father, mother and two or three cubs.

But the real facts concern flamingo. After the chicks hatch, the real miracle begins. The fact is that flamingos feed their chicks with milk, but not with ordinary milk, like penguins or pigeons, but with their own blood! Gracefully bending over her baby, the flamingo opens its black and pink beak, and reddish “bird milk” flows into the chick’s mouth. It contains proteins and vitamins and even 23% of blood! It gives flamingo milk its unusual color. It is formed in the esophagus of nursing birds. But how they arrange such “bloodletting” for themselves has not yet been fully clarified.

Loved by many. This is a combination of delicate soufflé and dark chocolate, a win-win- not too greasy and airy filling and chocolate that melts in your mouth. A great option for tea, coffee or as a compliment. They even created a cake based on them, which was immediately loved by those with a sweet tooth.

Do birds give milk?

Children sometimes wonder: “Why is Bird’s Milk called that?” Do birds even give milk? And adults know this for sure. The vast majority of birds, like reptiles and other amphibians, are not mammals, but oviparous. And those that feed their chicks in a way similar to that existing in mammals, do it with a viscous liquid similar to milk completely different. So, we can say that bird’s milk does not exist in nature, and even more so, it is not included in candies.

But despite this obvious thing, not all adults know why “Bird's milk” is called that. But most likely they simply don’t think about where such a strange and ridiculous name comes from.

Where does this name come from?

The fact is that the Poles borrowed this name from the legends about the healing milk of birds of paradise, with which they supposedly feed their chicks. Birds' milk is also mentioned in the comedy ancient Greek philosopher Aristophanes "Birds". It is described as the highest delicacy, the food of the gods, which gives incredible strength and health.

In ancient times, it was customary to ask fans to give amazing gifts. How more amazing gift, the greater the chances for the heart of the young beauty. And if a girl didn’t like the guy at all, she asked him for bird’s milk, probably knowing that this was just a legend, and he wouldn’t get him, which means there would be a reason to refuse. Poor young men died in search of this magic milk, but no one found it.

This legend, in one interpretation or another, is found among many peoples. Since ancient times, Russians even have a proverb: “The rich have everything, except bird’s milk.”

Thanks to such a variety of fairy tales and legends, bird's milk has become synonymous with something special and rare. That's why Bird's Milk is called that. To emphasize the divinity of the delicacy and compare it with the mythical milk of the birds of paradise.

Now, however, a small number of birds have been found that feed their chicks with something like milk. For example, flamingos and penguins. But the creators of the candies clearly did not have this in mind, and even at the time of the invention of the candies, and especially the birth of this legend, they could not have known about this.

What are the candies made of?

These candies were first produced in 1936 in Poland, under the name Ptasie Mleczko, and there they were a resounding success. The famous Soviet factory "Rot Front" decided to repeat this success and began producing them in the USSR in the 1960s. They decided not to stand on ceremony with the name and translated it verbatim. That's why "Bird's Milk" is called that way.

The composition of the sweets is very simple - no super rare ingredients. It's a mixture egg white, sugar, gelatin and butter, sprinkled with chocolate. The ingredients are clearly not why Bird's Milk is called that. But despite the simple composition, preparing them is not so easy; everything is important - the freshness of the products, the speed of mixing, and the cooling temperature.

Therefore, they made sweets in small batches, which quickly sold out. During the Soviet era, shortages were a common thing, and these candies were especially difficult to get. Soviet people This is how they interpreted why "Bird's milk". They believed that this was due to their scarcity and unusualness at that time.

GOST was strictly observed, and those who ate them then say that the delicacy was much tastier than it is today. Now, unfortunately, many ingredients are being replaced with cheaper and synthetic ones. Not every factory makes them equally well, and some have changed the recipe so much that the taste is unrecognizable. Candy "Bird's Milk" from "Rot Front" is still considered a standard.

How did the cake come about?

Later, in the 1980s, the confectioners of the then elite restaurant “Prague”, led by Vladimir Guralnik, invented sponge cake, which had the same name. It was a cake filled with the most delicate soufflé and, like the legendary candies, dipped in chocolate. That's why the cake is called "Bird's Milk". It is also unique in that a patent was never issued for any other in the USSR, but this one was issued.

Nowadays it is also baked at home, since the recipe is not a secret. But due to the complexity of the technology, only the most skillful and experienced housewives can achieve it.