Birds – Nature’s Airborne Navigators

Source:Pixabay

Introduction

Birds have fascinated man over the years with their natural ability to FLY with beauty and ease. .

Source:Pixabay

I look forward to having you all join me on this journey of writing on these breath taking creatures.

Why do birds migrate?

Source: Pixabay

Some birds migrate during the winter to escape the cold and to find enough food. They travel to warmer parts of the world nearer the equator. Birds that can find food during the winter, particularly those that eat seeds, do not need to migrate. Birds that eat insects find it hard to catch their food in the winter, so they need to travel to where they can find enough food to eat.

Arctic tern on Farne Islands

The Arctic tern travels the farthest. It leaves the Arctic at the end of the summer and migrates all the way south to America. When summer in Antarctica ends, it travels back to the Arctic to breed. This is a round trip of 40,000km.

A bird as small as a bee!

bee hummingbird

Bee hummingbird (_Melisuga helenae_) female, Cuba

Bee hummingbird (_Mellisuga helenae_) immature male, Cuba

The bee hummingbird from Cuba is the world’s smallest bird. It is about 6cm long and weighs just 2g. Its name is appropriate as it is literally the size of a bee! This tiny bird feeds on nectar and small insects and is now quite rare as its habitat is being destroyed. There are 320 different species of hummingbird. They get their name from the fact that the flapping of their wings is so fast, about ten times a second, that they make a humming sound. Hummingbirds are targeted as prey by other birds, such as hawks.

Humming birds are the jewels of the bird world with their delicate structure and bright glittering from flowers as they need a high energy food to replace all the energy they use up flapping their wings so fast.

What do birds eat!

Secretary bird eating a snake

Birds eat a variety of different foods. Birds of prey, such as eagles, hawks and falcons, hunt for live animals. The bigger ones target other birds and even mammals, such as squirrels and monkeys. The smaller birds of prey tend to go for smaller animals and insects. Some prefer to stick to one type of prey. The secretary bird targets reptiles, and ospreys like to eat fish. Other birds feed on insects, fruits and nuts. The blue tit favours seeds and fruit, whereas blackbirds catch insects and worms.

Which birds are night-hunters?

Watch carefully

Most owls hunt for their food at night. To do this, they have excellent eyesight that allows them to see in the dark. They can also hear extremely well, which helps them to locate their prey. Small animals like mice are their usual prey, but some owls will attempt to catch larger prey like young rabbits or birds. Owls also have the benefit of being able to fly silently, so that they can swoop down and catch their victim by surprise using their long, sharp talons. Only the snowy owl and short-eared owl hunt during the day as well as at night.

How are birds able to fly?

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Birds wings are perfectly designed for flight as they create an upward force known as "lift". The top of the wing is curved, which makes it faster over this upper surface than air moving under the wing. It is this that produces lift to keep the bird in the air. Forward thrust is created when the bird flaps its wings. The shape and position of the large flight feathers help with this as they turn upwards when the wing moves down. The rest of the bird’s body also helps it to fly. The skeleton and feathers are strong but light. The tail helps to balance and steer the bird and the beast muscles power the wing movements.

Are all birds able to fly?

*The ostrich is the heaviest of all the birds as well as the tallest. It also lays the biggest egg of any bird alive today.*

We usually associate birds with flying, but there are some birds that don’t fly. Most flightless birds are large and are able to defend themselves by using their size, fast movement or strong kick. The largest flightless bird is the ostrich. It has wings, but they are too small to lift the ostrich into the air and its feathers are not suitable for flying. Penguins are also not able to fly, but their wings have adapted to flippers that help them to swim at great speed. They are excellent at swimming and diving.

Why do some birds have attractive, brightly coloured feathers?

Male Peacock

It is usually the male birds that have the most striking feathers. This is because they use them to impress and attract a mate. The male peacock is well-known for having an eye-catching display. He struts and parades in front of a female in order to try to win her over. Birds of paradise also display their bright feathers as an attempt to attract a female. Some male birds lose their colour and turn a dull brown during the winter. This is because there is no need to attract a mate at this time of year. Impressive feathers may also serve another purpose for birds. They send a message to other males warning them to stay away from their territory.

The purpose of birds’ beaks?

Different birds beaks

Birds’ beaks, or bills, are designed to help them eat whatever type of food they feed on. Birds of prey, such as vultures and hawks, have hooked beaks that can pull off flesh. Some have a long bill, such as the woodcock, which can be inserted into the ground to dig out worms.Woodpeckers have long, sharp bills for hammering on trees to find insects. They oystercatcher uses its beak to open shellfish and herons can spear fish. The spoonbill has a large, flat beak for moving through water to find food. Birds that eat seeds, such as finches, have shorter beaks that ate strong enough to crack seeds. As well as helping birds to feed, beaks also come in useful for building nests.

Is there really a bird called the roadrunner?

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The famous cartoon character ‘Roadrunner’ is indeed based on a real bird. The roadrunner is a native of the south western United States and lives in the sparse desert environment of that area. Just like its cartoon image, the roadrunner is a fast mover. These birds have been timed at over 30kph, which is impressive considering the bird’s small size (they are around 30cm tall). Unlike the screen bird, however the real roadrunner tires quickly and prefers to walk rather than run. Luckily they are not usually chased by coyotes, as they are rather thin birds and not worth the effort of chasing.

The roadrunners (genus Geococcyx)

As members of the cuckoo family, roadrunners have a rather dull plumage, very different from the brightly coloured cartoon. They also do not produce the cartoon bird’s distinctive ‘beep beep’ call, but rather make a variety of clicking and cooing noises.

Why do birds sing?

Pixabay

Birds use their song to attract mates or protect their territory. It can also be a signal to female birds that a male wants to mate. This is why it is familiar to hear lots of birds singing in the spring during the breeding season. Their singing can also be a message to other male birds to alert them to their presence and warn them to stay away. Birds can also call to each other as a way of communicating things like danger, if there is a predator nearby. They can even specify exactly where the danger is and what particular predator is around. One bird, the mynah bird, has developed the ability to mimic any sound. They even mimic the noise of the camera shutters of bird photographers.

Are birds descended from dinosaurs?

Image Source

Scientists think that this may indeed be the case. This does not mean that all the dinosaurs evolved into birds, just that one or two species of dinosaur began to evolve the power of flight and eventually became birds. There were already some primitive birds in the sky when the dinosaurs died out 65 million years ago. This history has become more accepted by scientists as evidence has emerged. Many dinosaur skeletons are very similar in some ways to modern bird skeletons. In addition palaeontologists have discovered that several dinosaur species may have been covered in feathers, including the famous velociraptor of the dinosaur archaeopteryx shows a creature mind way between dinosaur and bird. It has wings and feathers but was probably a poor flyer. A more recent discovery, confuciusornis, is more birdlike.

Which is the smartest bird?

Parrots

Source: Pixabay

Ravens

When asked the question, most people would say that the owl is an intelligent bird. However, in reality the owl is not as intelligent as other birds. Several species of bird exhibit much more intelligence than the average avian. Amongst these are the parrots and strangely the various members of the corvidae family, which includes rooks, crows, ravens and jackdaws social structures and have been observed solving complex problems in the wild, as well as using basic tools such as sticks and twigs. Their confident nature means that they appear unafraid of contact with humans, which has led to their association with magic and witchcraft.

How do penguins keep warm?

Penguins

Most penguins do not actually live in cold climates! The only species that does is the emperor penguin, the largest of the penguin family. The emperor penguins’ environment is one of the extreme cold. Luckily the bird is well adapted to its environment. Like all animals that live in the icy wastes, the penguin has a thick layer of insulating fat underneath its skins and feathers that are adapted to trap air underneath them. This layer of air helps keep the penguin warm. The penguins’ eggs need special protection.

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The parents keep the eggs off the cold ice by balancing it on top of their feet and covering it with their stomachs. While one parent keeps the egg warm, the other one goes in search of food, often for several weeks or even months. On returning, the parents swap duties. The egg sitting penguin does not eat, instead it uses up the stores of energy it has developed which hunting for food.

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The penguin babies, when born, are covered in a soft downy fur. This is very good at keeping the chicks warm, but not waterproof. If the chick were to get into water it would quickly freeze. The adult penguin has a layer of oil over its feathers that helps it to stay warm in the water and to dry out quickly once back on land.

Which is the most common bird in the world?

passenger pigeon

Once upon a time, the world’s most common bird was the passenger pigeon. It was found across America in huge numbers, migrating flocks could be up over a 1.6km wide and up to 482.8km long! At the end of the 18th century it was estimated that there were 4 billion passenger pigeons in America. By 1914 it was extinct.

Rooster with chickens

Today the most common bird in the world is the common chicken. It is kept in vast numbers for the production of both eggs and for its meat.

Conclusion

Man has studied birds in order to unlock their secret of flight and in the process has discovered a world of utter beauty and grace.

For more on my series on amazing life in the water, on land & astoundingly parading the air, please follow me.

Thank You!

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