My Science School

Have you heard the expression ‘as dead as a dodo’? Dodos were strange-looking, heavy birds that could not fly. They lived on islands in the Indian Ocean until sailors hunted the very last one. Sadly, they have been extinct since 1800.

Is it true? Penguins argue with their wings.

Yes. Penguins live close together. When they squabble with each other, they flap their wings and jab their beaks to help make their point!

Amazing! Ostriches cannot fly, but they can run very quickly indeed. The African ostrich can sprint long at 70 kph! They live in dry grasslands and may have to travel a long way for food.

What has invisible wings?

Kiwis are flightless birds whose wings are so tiny that you cannot see them. They have long whiskers, no tail and a good sense of smell. They hunt at night for worms and insects.

Which bird ‘flies’ underwater?

Penguins are water birds which cannot fly. They live in the chilly Antarctic. They slide on snow and ice using their bellies as toboggans. But in water they are very graceful, using their wings as flippers as they swim along catching fish.

Picture Credit : Google

When a male gannet has caught fish for his mate and young, he must call out and wait for the female’s reply before he can find them amongst all the other gannets.

Why do birds sing?

Birds sing most of all during the breeding season. A male bird sings to attract a mate, or to tell other birds to keep away from his territory. Males and females also call to warn other birds that an enemy is near, such as a cat or a human.

Which birds copy sounds?

Some birds are natural mimics. This means they can copy sounds, such as the telephone ringing or even human speech. The mynah bird used to be popular as a caged pet because of this talent. Australian lyrebirds can even imitate a chainsaw!

Amazing! The African grey parrot is a real chatterbox. It can learn up to 800 different words, but it doesn’t know what they mean!

Is it true? Birds can sing very high notes.

Yes. Many birds can sing notes too high for us to hear! There is a wide range of beautiful birdsong, full of high and low notes.

Picture Credit : Google

The young of tree-nesting birds are naked and blind at first. Their parents have to look after them, and they are always hungry! They open their beaks wide and call loudly, which forces the parents to feed them.

What sits on its mother’s back?

Baby grebes can swim soon after they hatch. When they get cold or tired, they sit on their mother’s back to warm up and have a rest.

Amazing! The hummingbird lays the world’s smallest eggs. Each is only the size of your fingernail. Compared to this, an ostrich egg is huge, and thousands of times heavier.

Which father sits on his eggs until they hatch?

The male ostrich makes eggs with up to twelve different females. The females all lay their eggs in same nest. The male then sits on them himself until they hatch. Many types of male bird, including pigeons, take it in turns with the female to sit on the eggs.

Is it true? A duckling could mistake you for its mother.

Yes. A duckling thinks that the first creature it sees after hatching is its mother. If you were around, that would be you!

Picture Credit : Google

Most birds build nests to hide their eggs and to keep their young warm and safe from enemies. Colonies of weaver birds often build several nests in the same tree.

Amazing! Some nests are huge. An eagle’s nest or eyrie is so big that you could lie down in it! Some birds, such as the hummingbird, make tiny nests. The bee hummingbird’s nest is the same size as a thimble.

Why do birds sit on their eggs?

Birds sit on their eggs to keep them warm while the baby birds inside grow. If the eggs get cold, the babies inside will die, so birds don’t leave their eggs alone for long.

Is it true? Nests are birds’ homes where they sleep at night.

No. Birds only use nests for laying eggs and raising their chicks. They rest at night in hedges, trees or holes.

Do birds’ eggs all look the same?

Birds’ eggs are often coloured or patterned for camouflage. The guillemot’s eggs are also an unusual shape. They are pointed at one end so that if nudged, they spin in a circle instead of rolling off a cliff.

Picture Credit : Google

Water birds have skin between their toes. Their feet are like paddles, helping them move easily through the water. They can also walk on mud without sinking in.

Amazing! Jacanas are water birds that live in tropical places. Their very long toes allow them to step on water plants without sinking. They are sometimes called ‘lily-trotters’.

Is it true? Birds stand on one leg when they’ve hurt their foot.

No. When a bird stands on one leg, it is keeping the other foot warm, tucked up under its feathers.

What has legs like stilts?

Herons and storks have very long legs which look like stilts. They are ideal for standing or wading in shallow water, where the birds use their long beaks to catch fish and frogs.

Why don’t birds fall when they sleep?

Birds have a long tendon attached to each toe. When they rest on branches or another perch, they bend their legs and their toes lock around the perch.

Picture Credit : Google

A pelican has a beak with a stretchy pouch which can hold far more fish than its stomach! It scoops fish from the water using its beak like fishing net.

Amazing! A woodpecker uses its unusual beak to drill for insects, to make holes in dying trees to use as nests, and to hammer on a tree to mark its territory.

Why do birds have beaks?

Birds use their beaks to catch and hold food, to make nests and to preen themselves. They have different beaks because they eat different food. The toucan uses its enormous beak to pull fruits from delicate branches.

Is it true? Birds have teeth?

No. Birds cannot chew, so they grind food up with a gizzard inside their bodies, and sometimes by swallowing small stones too.

What climbs with its beak?

Parrots usually live in big noisy groups in tropical forests. They have short, curved powerful beaks for cracking nuts and seeds. Some parrots have beaks so strong that they can even use them to pull themselves up trees.

Picture Credit : Google

Birds have three different kinds of feathers: down to keep warm; body feathers to cover and protect; and flight feathers. Baby birds have down feathers and can’t fly until they’ve grown all their flight feathers.

Is it true? All flamingos are pink.

No. In the wild, flamingos are generally pink. Colour from the food is absorbed and passes to the feathers. But in captivity, their feathers can turn white if they have a change of diet.

Amazing! Most birds have over 1,000 feathers and some birds have an enormous number. Swans have about 25,000 feathers-more than almost any other bird!

How do birds keep clean?

All birds comb, or preen, their feathers with their beaks and claws. Love birds preen each other. Most birds also spread oil on their feathers from a gland above the tail, which keeps them waterproof.

Why are some feathers bright and others dull?

Many woodland birds, such as the tawny frogmouth, have dull feathers so that they can blend in with their background and keep safe. Male birds are often more brightly coloured to attract a mate.

Picture Credit : Google

Birds need to be light but strong to fly. They flap their wings to take off and fly higher in air. As the wing flaps down, the flight feathers close against the air, which pushes the bird up and forward. 

What has to run to take off?

Swans are too big and heavy to leap into the air. Instead they have to run along the surface of the water, flapping their powerful wings to get enough speed to take off.

Amazing! Big seabirds glide on air currents, sometimes not landing for weeks. Other birds can stay in the air for months, while swifts can spend years in the air, only landing to nest and mate.

Is it true? Birds can only fly forwards.

No. Hummingbirds are special. They can fly forwards, sideways, backwards and hover on the spot by flapping their wings very quickly!

What can fly and yet stay in the same spot?

Kestrels are experts at hovering. They fly into the wind and beat their wings very quickly. This lets them stay in the same position as they search for prey.

The African ostrich can grow up to 2.5 metres tall, which is much taller than the average man. The huge wandering albatross has the largest wingspan in the world, at up to three metres. Its long, pointed wings make it an excellent glider.

Amazing! There are around 9,000 different kinds of birds, in many colours, shapes and sizes. They live all over world, in steamy jungles, icy regions, by the sea, in towns, and some move from one area to another when they migrate.

Is it true? The first bird dates back to dinosaur times.

Yes. Archaeopteryx is the earliest bird-like creature that we know of. It lived 150 million years ago. It had a head like a reptile, sharp teeth, a long tail and feathered wings.

What are birds?

Birds all have two legs, two wings, a beak, they lay eggs and they are the only animals those have feathers. But not all birds can fly, and not all flying animals are birds.

Which are the smallest birds?

Hummingbirds are the smallest birds in world. The bee hummingbird of Cuba is no bigger than a bumblebee! Hummingbirds can flap their wings at up to 90 beats per second. They get their name from the humming sound their wings make.

Picture Credit : Google

Birds of prey catch and eat other animals. They are excellent hunters, with strong hooked beaks and sharp claws called talons, which they use to kill and tear at prey.

Why are birds of prey good hunters?

The eyes of a bird of prey are different from other birds’ eyes. They’re very big, and face forwards so they can judge detail and distance well. A buzzard’s eyes are as big as yours!

Amazing! Eagles can catch animals much bigger and heavier than themselves. The harpy eagle which lives in South American jungles is the biggest eagle of all. It has huge feet which it uses for grabbing and crushing monkeys and other animals.

Is it true? Some birds eat eggs.

Yes. The Egyptian vulture uses stones to break into its favourite food, ostrich eggs. Birds can have very fussy tastes. Bat hawks, for example, only eat bats. Some eagles eat fish, while others prefer snakes.

How do ospreys hunt?

Ospreys fly high above the water looking for fish. When they spot one, they dive and enter the water feet-first to catch it. Their toes have tiny sharp spikes for gripping slippery fish.

Picture Credit : Google

Common tailorbirds are small songbirds found in many parts of Asia. They are less than 15 cm long and have greenish upper parts and a chestnut-coloured patch on the head. Their pointed tail is usually held upright and they keep flitting between branches. And yes, they get their name for the incredible nests they build, er… stitch.

A stitch in time…

While some species use nests for roosting, most build and use their nests for laying eggs and raising their young ones. And it’s for the latter that the tailorbird too uses its nest. But it’s no ordinary nest! It’s linked to a craft and no two nests may look the same. The nest is fashioned out of leaves that are broad and strong enough to support and safeguard the eggs and the chicks. With its needle-like beak, the bird punches tiny holes along the edges of the chosen leaves that are still attached to the tree branch. The holes are so tiny that they do not affect the leaf in any way. In fact, the leaves remain green and help with camouflage. The bird then carefully stitches together the edges of these leaves using plant fibre or insect silk – just like humans work with a needle and thread! When the leaves are stitched, they resemble a cup. Once the cup is ready, the bird then cushions it inside using feathers, fur, grass, cotton, etc. if a thread or leaf is damaged mid-way, efforts are taken to repair the nest. However, if it’s beyond repair, it’s abandoned and a new one is stitched. The putting together of the nest is also a gentle lesson for us on sharing of work – while the female stitches the nest, the male brings in the supplies.

 

Picture Credit : Google