I won't go quite so far as to say birds "farm" fish. (although it's possible that 60 million years of evolution may favor that behavior)
What I observed was nothing more than 1 bird trying to pirate another bird's catch. I've seen that happen on 2 occasions inland, and many times around the seashore.
The sticking points are time and intent. When we say "birds transfer fish to unstocked ponds", some people get a very unrealistic vision of birds deliberately and methodically seeding a pond. When they say it doesn't happen, they're correct in what they're saying. But that's not what most of us are saying. We're saying that over time, fish are incidentally introduced into ponds by birds. Deliberate or incidental, it doesn't matter. It only takes 2 egg-laying fish or 1 live bearer and it's a done deal.
Sometimes I think my fish gave me a virus that created all this digging and feeding behavior I've been experiencing.
