New Zealand’s birds have a problem–they’re too smelly for their own good. The birds produce a special wax that helps to keep their feathers healthy. The wax also tends to give off an odor. In the past, this wasn’t a problem because New Zealand doesn’t have any native mammal predators. But now that humans have introduced predators such as dogs, stoats, and cats to the country more than 40 bird species have gone extinct.

Biologist Jim Briskie of Canterbury University in Christchurch, New Zealand, suggests that deodorant might be the answer. “If we prove that this is a problem, we might be able to envision some kind of odor-eater or deodorant we could put into the nest to absorb some of those odors and protect them more effectively,” Briskie said. But deodorant may not be the best solution. The birds’ smells might be a way that the birds communicate with their mates or offspring.

Can you think of any ideas on how this problem might be solved?

Read more about bird B.O. on National Geographic News.

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Photograph by Frans Lanting, National Geographic