Rooster acts differently from hens when directly fed

Question

So whenever I go to check on my chickens I always bring some treats for them. I usually give them turnips, etc. and I feed them by hand. Now, the hens come running for the food, but the rooster always seems skeptical about it. The hens are perfectly fine eating directly from my hand, but when I try to feed the rooster by hand, he always runs away. Why does this happen?

Answer 1

I cannot give you a definite answer, but I observed a similar thing with our neighbor's chickens. We often throw a certain kind of garden weeds (which they love) over the fence for them and the hens always come running. But the rooster always waits and lets the hens eat first. Sometimes he starts eating after several minutes, sometimes he doesn't eat at all. I assume in his mind it's more important to watch out for dangers (like predators) while his ladies are distracted by the food.