University:
Michigan State University
Course:
BS 162 | Organismal and Population Biology
Academic year:

2020
Views:

458

Pages:

4
Author:

slypery5hy

All About Birds Birds come in all shapes and sizes but they all have certain traits in common. • They have feathers instead of hair or fur. They are the only animal group that has feathers. • They have beaks or bills and no teeth. • They have two feet and two wings. • They are warmblooded. • They do not have live young like mammals, but lay eggs. • Most birds take care of their young, feeding them until they are old enough to ﬁnd their own food. • Most birds build some kind of nest. • Birds have good eye sight and can see colors. • Most birds can ﬂy. They have hollow bones to make their skeleton lighter for ﬂight. They have large developed chest muscles for ﬂight. • Birds can survive cold temperatures because they have an underlying layer of down feathers that act as thermal insulation, like wearing a down jacket! • Male birds are often (but not always) much more brightly colored than females who can be dull colored to blend in (camouﬂage) while nesting. • Some birds eat meat (rodents, ﬁsh, other birds or carrion), some are seed eaters and some eat plants. • Many birds migrate to a cooler climate for reproducing and summer feeding, and then return to a warmer climate for the winter. • Birds sing to attract a mate or mark a territory. • Not all birds can ﬂy! Flightless birds include ostrich, emu, rhea, cassowary, kiwi, penquins, etc. They all nest on the ground. Flightless birds have developed other ways of defending themselves from predators. Some are fast runners. Some are fast swimmers. Some can kick! Some live on Islands where there are no predators, so they don’t need to ﬂy. Can you name one famous ﬂightless bird that became extinct because predators invaded the islands where they lived? (the dodo) Fill out the ﬂightless bird sheet, by naming the ﬂightless birds from around the world. There are many different groups (Orders) of birds. The different orders are separated by different traits. See if you can tell how the following orders of birds are similar. Struthioniformes — Cassowaries, Emus, Kiwis, Ostriches and Rheas Galliformes — Grouse, Quails, Pheasants and Turkeys Anseriformes — Ducks, Geese, and Swans Psittaciformes — Mawcaws and Parrots Strigiformes — Owls Trochiliformes — Hummingbirds Coraciiformes — Kingﬁshers Falconiformes — Hawks, Eagles, and Vultures Gaviiformes — Loons Piciformes — Woodpeckers Charadriformes — Sandpipers and Seagulls Ciconiiformes — Herons Columbriformes — Doves and Pigeons Passeriformes(songbirds) — Buntings, Cardinals, Catbirds, Chats, Chickadees, Crossbills, Crows, Dippers, Finches, Flycatchers, Goldﬁnches, Gnatcatchers, Gnateaters, Jays, Kinglets, Larks, Magpies, Martins, Mockingbirds, Nuthatches, Ovenbirds, Pipits, Pittas, Robins, Ravens, Shrikes, Sparrows, Starlings, Swallows, Tits, Thrushes, Waxwings, Weavers, Woodcreepers, Woodwarblers, Wrens, and Vireos Look at the Bird Groups on the sheet. Can you see what makes the birds in each group alike? Can you see how one group differs from another? osprey great horned owl red tailed hawk eagle Birds of Prey Songbirds robin There are many orders of birds. To make identiﬁcation easier we can group them. What birds can you see in your neighborhood? sparrow thrush Herons Aquatic Birds, Diving Birds and Waterfowl loon hummingbird chickadee Pheasant-like Birds great blue heron grouse merganser wild turkey