LSUMNS bird activity

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Birds: The Best Beak A look into the adaptations that help get birds the food they need. An LSU Museum of Natural Science presentation to accompany the activity

description

A look into the adaptations that help get birds the food they need.

Transcript of LSUMNS bird activity

Page 1: LSUMNS bird activity

Birds: The Best BeakA look into the adaptations that help

get birds the food they need.

An LSU Museum of Natural Science presentation to accompany the activity

Page 2: LSUMNS bird activity

Bird adaptations- Beaks

The most important function of a bird bill is feeding, and it is shaped according to what a bird eats.

You can use a beak shape to:

• Identify a bird

• Identify behavior and think about what it eats.

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Common bill shapes

• Cracker• Shredder• Probe• Chisel• Strainer• Spear• Tweezers

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Pelican-The pelican has a long beak with

a hooked tip and a huge pouch.

-The pelican’s pouch is used as a dip net to catch fish.

-The pouch can even stretch to hold up to two gallons of water!

Pelecanus erythrorhyncho

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Wood Duck-Wood ducks have broad, flat bills with

rows of fine notches along the edge.

-They eat plants, seeds, grasses and other small insects and animals that they find on or under the water.

Aix sponsa

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American Robin-American robins search the ground for insects and berries.

-They most commonly eat

earthworms, grubs, butterflies, cherries, and blueberries.

Turdus migratorius

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Sparrow

-Though sparrows generally prefer to eat seeds with hard shells, sometimes they also eat flowers, insects, spiders, and berries.

-Sparrows look for food on the ground or in low bushes. They sometimes even fly up to catch insects in flight.

Zonotrichia albicollis

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Louisiana Heron-Herons and egrets eat fish, crustaceans, and insects using their beak much like a spear.

They often stalk their prey in shallow water, often running or shuffling their feet, flushing prey into view.

Egretta tricolor

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Hummingbird-Hummingbirds have long

beaks that are essential for reaching into long, tubular flowers to gather nectar.

-Hummingbirds’ beaks are alsoused to clean their feathers and to build their nests.

Archilocus colubris

Selasphoprus rufus

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Dropper beak(Compte-gouttes)

Tweezer beak(Pince à épiler)

Nutcracker bea(casse-noix)

Clothespin beak(Pince à linge)

Strainer beak(Passoire)

Tongs beak(Pinces)

Total food collected(Quantité de nourriture collectée)

Nectar

Tree insects

Seeds(Graines)

Fish

Grubs(Vers)

Aquatic plants

Example of data table for amount of food collected at station with utensils (beak-type).Exemple de tableau à double entrée: quantité de nourriture collectée pour chaque atelier, avec les ustensiles (=type de bec)