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Birdology

30 Activities and Observations for Exploring the World of Birds

Chicago Review Press Incorporated

It's a Bird!

What makes a bird a bird? What makes birds special?

Birds are unique animals because they have feathers. But feathers need a lot of care: preening and bathing are important. Birds are fascinating to us because they make a huge variety of sounds. It's fun to keep a bird journal so you can remember all the sounds and songs you hear.

Feather Facts

Here are some basic facts about birds and their feathers:

* All birds have feathers — they are the only animals on earth that have feathers.

* Most birds can fly, but some can't. You probably already know that a penguin can't fly, and an ostrich can't fly, either. But they all have feathers.

* Feathers come in many shapes and sizes. A feather from a hummingbird is very small.

How many feathers do you think are on one wing? A lot? There are usually 9 or 10 primary flight feathers — the pointier ones at the forward part of the wing — and 9 or 10 secondary flight feathers — the ones closer to the bird's body. If the bird has already molted a feather, there will be fewer. Birds drawn in cartoons or in animated movies often have too many wing feathers — or too few!

The small feathers covering the body of a bird — on its head and back, for example — are called contour feathers. The contour feathers of penguins are so narrow and fine that they look like fur!

Feathers on most newly hatched birds are very different than those on an adult. Whether you observe a fuzzy duckling on a farm or watch a television program showing bald eagle nestlings, these young birds will be covered in soft, fluffy down feathers.

Flight feathers on the wings enable birds to fly long distances, and some birds can fly very fast. The speed of a peregrine falcon can be about 200 miles per hour! But that's only when it is diving down onto its prey, with wings half-closed, in a plummet called a stoop. Most small birds easily fly at about 20 to 30 miles an hour for short distances. A bird flying fast during migration may speed along at about 60 miles per hour.

Keeping Clean

All birds need to have clean feathers. Feathers have to be in perfect working order so a bird can fly. But feathers also keep a bird's body temperature just right, and they keep the bird dry. So birds frequently preen — that means a bird uses its beak to clean its feathers. It takes a feather in its beak and carefully pulls the length of the feather through to its end. A preening bird sometimes looks as if it is nibbling at its feathers. This helps to clean dirt, dust, or mud from the feathers. It can also clean off tiny insect parasites such as lice. Another method of keeping clean is anting — settling down on or near an anthill. The bird spreads out its wings and tail, and as the ants crawl about they leave behind a substance (formic acid) that may repel parasites.

Birds also take baths to keep their feathers clean. A bird taking a bath in a puddle or a birdbath is very active, fluffing up its feathers, dipping its head in the water, and then shaking off the water with great energy.

Dust baths are also important to birds. Pigeons, doves, and English sparrows are commonly seen fluffing their feathers and crouching down into fine sand to "dust" their feathers. Some researchers think this helps the birds to rid their feathers of parasites such as tiny lice or mites.

Birds also oil their feathers. Oil from glands at the base of the tail is picked up with the beak and rubbed across the feathers when the bird is preening.

Dinosaurs Had Feathers! Fossils of several different types of dinosaurs have been found that have clear impressions of feathers in the stone. Microraptor, Anchiornis, and Confuciusornis (kon-few-see-us-OR-nis) fossils, all found in China, are just a few of the birdlike dinosaurs that had feathers. All lived about 150 to 120 million years ago. Confuciusornis, only about one foot (30.5 cm) long, had long tail feathers. It may have been the first birdlike dino to have a true beak — with a point and no teeth. At least 500 fossil specimens of Confuciusornis have been found in China. It must have been fairly common. It is named after Confucius, an important Chinese philosopher who lived about 2,500 years ago.

It seems that each year, new fossils of feathered dinosaurs are discovered. Keep an eye out for news stories and science articles — you may read about a new finding yourself!

There are many kinds (species) of birds that don't fly. Here are a few:

* The kiwi of New Zealand. It just walks instead of flying. Its feathers look like fur.

* An ostrich. But it can run fast instead!

* Penguins. There are more than 12 species of penguins, and although they can't fly, they easily swim and dive in the ocean to catch fish. They kind of fly underwater.

* The rare kakapo, a type of parrot from New Zealand can only weakly glide, so it mostly walks everywhere.

Weird! Feathers are made of keratin, the same flexible protein that your hair and nails are composed of.

Anatomy

People who study birds also need to know the different parts of a bird. Anatomy is important when you need to describe the colors or patterns you see.

In addition to feathers, another adaptation for flight is a skeleton that is lightweight — some of the larger bones of a bird have air spaces inside, and the bones have thin walls.

Birds do not have teeth — or the heavier jaw needed to support teeth. Mergansers (diving ducks with narrow beaks) have serrated (saw-toothed) edges on their beaks. These serrations are not true teeth — just rows of tiny sharp points — but they help the mergansers catch and hold fish.

The front of a bird has to support big muscles for flying. These muscles lie against the protruding breastbone, or keel.

Name Game

You probably already know the different names for male and female chickens: a male is called a rooster or cock, and a female is a hen. A newly hatched chicken just out of the egg is called a chick. A female goose is — a goose! The males are called ganders, and the young ones are goslings.

Many other birds have different names for the males, females, and fledglings or hatchlings:

* A male swan is a cob.

* A female falcon is a falcon, but the male is a tiercel (TEER-sel).

* A male duck is called a drake.

* A young swan is a cygnet (SIG-net).

* A young hawk or falcon is an eyass (EYE-ess).

* A ruff is the name for a male sandpiper. Females are reeves.

* You might be surprised to find out that there is no such thing as a seagull. Although "seagull" is a commonly used name, you won't find it in any field guide or scientific book about birds. The correct name is simply "gull." But even a scientist will know what you mean.

* There are many species of sparrows. Many of them look alike, so they are very hard to identify and tell apart. There are many different species of warblers, also. Even an experienced bird-watcher might report that she or he saw "several warblers this morning" but was not able to identify them.

The groupings of different types of birds are listed at the end of this book. The scientific names for the species shown in this book are also listed.

Sounds Like a Bird!

Can you identify any bird songs yet? You may have already heard geese honking when they fly overhead or ducks quacking in a pond. Perhaps there are doves in your neighborhood that coo early in the morning. If you live near a farm or keep chickens, you can easily tell the difference between a rooster crowing and chickens clucking.

The sounds from domesticated farmyard birds are good examples of the variety that a bird can make. If you visit a zoo, park, or nature center, you have an excellent opportunity to listen to different types of birds.

Pet birds such as parakeets, finches, or cockatiels also make songs, trills, and calls. Many pet parrots will even "comment" on household events, such as the entry of a person into the room.

If you can visit someone who has a pet bird, listen carefully to the whistles or calls it makes. Does it make different sounds if you open a door or if you drop something on the floor? Or if the owner offers it food? If someone runs a gush of water from the faucet, it may immediately make some excited sounds.

Some loud, hollow sounds are made by woodpeckers as they tap on rotting branches or dead trees, looking for beetle grubs (larvae) and other insects. The hairy woodpecker pecks rapidly on hollow branches to make a drumming noise. This probably lets other birds know that the tree is part of its territory. Both male and female hairy woodpeckers drum.

Hoot, Rattle, and Coo! Different species of birds can make an amazing variety of sounds: chipping, hooting, twittering, trilling, and sharp whistling. Some songs are very complicated, while some calls are simple loud honks, shrieks, or quacks. A belted kingfisher makes a sort of rattle as it flies out over a pond. The simple, harsh caw of a crow is easy to identify. The chipping sparrow has a steady sequence of chip-chip-chip-chip notes. A male grasshopper sparrow sings a song that is difficult to describe. It makes a few musical notes, followed by a series of rough buzzing sounds.

Don't Be Fooled!

Some species of birds are very good imitators — or mimics — of other types of birds. The blue jay is a good example. It can mimic the whistle of a red-tailed hawk or a red-shouldered hawk so well that even experienced bird-watchers look all around, expecting to see a hawk nearby. Jays can even mimic mechanical sounds. A blue jay with a territory near a car repair shop can imitate a power wrench!

Probably the best known mimic is the northern mockingbird. It learns to imitate the songs and sounds of other birds near its territory — even a rooster crowing. As it sings, you can hear a long sequence of several different songs and sounds. It may even imitate a creaky, rusty gate or a car alarm! Crows, starlings, catbirds, and brown thrashers are also good at mimicking and imitating.

Surprise! On a nature walk through a grove of pines, you might hear an excited chipping, chattering, and squealing. An intense search for a bird will be useless — because it is probably a red squirrel! Red squirrels make loud squeaks and chirrs that can easily be mistaken for a bird. They usually make these noises if another squirrel has invaded their territory.

A common mistake for beginning bird-watchers is to hear a soft cooing-hooing call and think it is an owl. But it usually turns out to be a mourning dove. Its call heard up close is a slow coo-ahh, cooo-cooo-cooo.

Spots, Stripes, Dots, and Streaks

The colors and patterns on birds help us to identify the different species. Markings such as streaks, spots, and wing bars are usually easy to see. You may also notice a crest or the shape of a tail — and then start your own sketchbook of the designs and shapes you observe.

Field Marks

The patterns and designs on birds are called field marks because they are easy to see and remember "in the field" — while you are out walking or hiking in the woods, fields, or even in your own backyard. Some species of birds are named for their most obvious field marks: the black-capped chickadee has a distinct black "cap." The male red-winged blackbird has brilliant red "shoulders."

Many birds have rounded dots or spots on their breast or belly, such as the wood thrush. Many warblers, sparrows, hawks, and owls have streaks on their front feathers.

The killdeer is easily identified by two dark bands across its upper breast, while different species of plover at the shore have just one band.

There may also be a white or light-colored streak just above the eye, called an eyebrow. And others have a dark or light line that seems to go right across the eye — that's called an eye-line or eye-stripe.

Even the color of the eye is helpful when noting details of color and patterns. The common goldeneye duck has beautiful yellow-gold eyes. It also has a very obvious field mark: a large white spot on the side of its head.

The part of the eye that is colored is called the iris. (Humans usually have a blue or brown iris, but some people have greenish eyes, grayish eyes, or light brown "hazel" eyes.) The iris of most birds is dark brown. But many species, especially hawks, have eyes that are yellow for their first year and then gradually darken. The northern goshawk, Cooper's hawk, and sharp-shinned hawks all have yellow eyes when they are young. The iris becomes darker and darker until it is a beautiful red, like a garnet gemstone. It may take about three years for this to slowly happen.

The irises of a Brewer's blackbird are yellow. The eyes of a common loon are red. Most owls have yellow eyes, but the big barred owl and the ghostly pale barn owl both have dark brown eyes. However, when you see cartoons or animated movies of owls, the artists sometimes color the eyes bright yellow-gold (no matter what species it is) just so they look dramatic or frightening.

One forest bird is named for its beautiful eye color: the red-eyed vireo. It is fairly common in southern Canada and the eastern half of the United States, but it usually hunts for insects high in the trees — so you are not likely to see its eyes close-up.

Some birds, such as the male common yellowthroat, a warbler, have a "mask" across their face. (In older books, this small bird is called the Maryland yellowthroat. The common names of some species have changed over time, as researchers find out more about them.)

The cedar waxwing, a common songbird found across most of the United States and Canada, has a much smaller dark mask.

Different Designs

If you have ever seen a blue jay or a black-capped chickadee, you know that the males and females look alike. But for many other species, there's an obvious difference between the genders (sexes): the male red-winged blackbird has brilliant red "shoulders," but the female looks like a big brown-streaked sparrow.

A male northern cardinal is bright red, but the females are a dull reddish-tan. The male downy woodpecker and male hairy woodpecker both have a bright red patch on the backs of their heads, but the females have no red at all.

If you've ever looked at a flock of chickens, you can often tell the rooster (the male) from the hens (the females). The red comb on the head of a rooster is larger than a comb on a hen. The rooster is also larger and usually has longer, curved tail feathers.

But the gender difference is not as obvious for many wild species. Female American robins are somewhat paler or duller than the males. Female bluebirds are not as blue as their mates. And both robins and bluebirds have fledglings — young just out of the nest — that have spots all over their breast.

Some species have other colors or patterns that are easy to see and remember. The northern flicker, a woodpecker found over most of the United States and Canada, has a white rump. This is easy to spot when the bird takes off or is in flight. One small warbler is named just for its colorful rump: the yellow-rumped warbler, which can be distinguished from many other small birds by the yellow feathers at the base of the tail.

The brown thrasher, a large red-brown bird with a long tail found across much of eastern and central Canada and the States, has two thin white wing bars across its wings.

The northern mockingbird is gray, but it has large white wing patches that are easily noticeable as it flies or when it flashes open its wings.

Some of the colors of a bird's feathers are the result of substances called pigments, which may come from the food it eats. A male cardinal that eats mostly berries may look brighter red than a cardinal that eats mostly seeds. But other colors — such as the blue of a blue jay or an indigo bunting — are created by the structure of the feathers themselves. There are microscopic, prismlike angles along the vanes of the feathers that strongly reflect blue light.

Can You See Me Now?

Many birds that look for food on the ground (or nest on the ground) have colors and patterns that blend in so well with the leaves around them that it is very hard to see them if they aren't moving. This camouflage is called protective coloration. A few good examples are the ruffed grouse, wild turkey, and woodcock. Whip-poor-wills and nighthawks also have great camouflage, which protects them at their nest on the ground.

Some birds are much lighter in color on their undersides. The eastern kingbird is mostly dark gray above, but its breast and belly are white. Tree swallows have white undersides. So do different species of chickadees, nuthatches, and several woodpeckers. This dark-above and light-below coloration is called countershading by biologists.

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Excerpted from Birdology by Monica Russo, Kevin Byran. Copyright © 2015 Monica Russo. Excerpted by permission of Chicago Review Press Incorporated.
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