Birds Adaptation and Diet Quiz

Birds have the highest average body temperature among vertebrates, often right at the threshold of protein denaturation. Generally, bird temperatures range from ~38-42 degrees Celsius.

Birds' respiratory system delivers oxygen to tissues, removes carbon dioxide, and is crucial for thermoregulation. It is different than other vertebrates, using small lungs and 9 air sacs.

Air moving through bird lungs flows in one direction, providing a continuous supply of fresh, oxygen-rich air.

Permanent residents stay in the same area year-round, e.g., House Sparrows.

These birds migrate north for breeding in summer, returning south for winter.

These birds migrate south for winter, then return north.

Transients are birds that breed further north/south that we see only during migration.

Birds migrate primarily due to food availability and colder temperatures in their breeding grounds in the winter. Changes in daylight trigger hormonal changes preparing them for this flight.

Small ground-dwelling bird with a topknot, scaly undersides, bluish-gray plumage; males have copper heads, black faces, and white stripes above their eyes.

Primarily herbivorous, eating seeds, leaves, and some berries and insects.

Coastal sagebrush, Chaparral, foothills, and high desert.

Can raise body temperature up to 7 or 8 degrees to reduce water loss; can lose up to 50% body water.

Breeding plumage features distinctive ochre-colored plumage behind the eyes and over ear coverts.

Small to medium-sized water birds with lobed toes, excellent swimmers and divers.

Polygynandry.

Member of the grebe family of water birds.

A diving bird that uses its wings to swim underwater.

A type of seabird that breeds in the South Pacific and South Atlantic.

An open ocean habitat; not near land.

A large seabird with a black and white body, grey head, and yellow bill.

A gland that helps albatrosses remove excess salt from their bodies.

A mating system where a pair of birds remains together only during breeding season.

Bird order including pelicans, spoonbills, and herons. The classification may be in question.

Similarities in characteristics arising from independent origins, not shared ancestry.

A group of scavenger birds found in the Americas, known for eating carrion.

A large, dark bird with a red head and pale bill known for its scavenger habits.

An order of birds of prey that includes New World vultures.

An animal that feeds on dead animals or other decaying organic matter.

Dead and decaying flesh or other organic matter.

Feeding on fish.

The natural environment of an animal, plant, or organism.

Adult Northern Harriers are gray above and whitish below, with black wingtips, a dark trailing edge, and a black-banded tail. Females and immatures are brown with black tail bands. Adult females have whitish undersides with brown streaks, while immatures have a buffy color with less streaking.

All Northern Harriers have an obvious white rump patch visible in flight.

Golden Eagles are among the largest birds in North America.

Golden Eagles have broad wings, similar to Red-tailed Hawks, but longer.

Adult Golden Eagles are dark brown, featuring a golden sheen on the back of the head and neck.

Young Golden Eagles have distinct white patches near their tail and wing bases.

Bald Eagles are large raptors, larger than turkey vultures and red-tailed hawks.

Bald Eagles have white heads and tails, dark brown bodies and wings, bright yellow legs and bills.

Both male and female doves produce a nutrient-rich substance called 'crop milk' to feed their young. This is secreted from fluid-filled cells in the crop lining.

The Band-tailed Pigeon is the largest pigeon species in North America.

Mourning Doves are light gray and brown with spots on their wings. Their colors are muted, and males and females look similar.

Mourning doves have a unique whistling sound made by their wings during take-off and landing.

Greater Roadrunners have four toes on each foot arranged in a zygodactyl pattern; two point forward, and two point backward.

The Greater Roadrunner is the largest cuckoo in the Americas.

Band-tailed Pigeons inhabit the western coast of the United States and the Southwest.

Mourning Doves live in open woodlands of North and Central America.

The ostrich has only two toes on each foot, which helps it run fast. This is a key adaptation for its lifestyle in open grasslands.

Rheas have large wings even though they cannot fly. They use their wings as sails while running to help them maintain balance and speed.

Cassowaries have a very dangerous inner toe with an elongated, dagger-like claw. This makes their foot a powerful weapon used for defense.

The common ostrich is the largest living bird species. It can reach up to 9 feet tall and weigh up to 346 pounds.

Rheas, like ostriches, exhibit polygyny. This means one male mates with multiple females and then takes care of the nest.

Emus and cassowaries belong to the Casuariiformes order. They are both large, flightless birds with three toes on each foot.

Ostriches are found in Africa, typically living in open grasslands, semi-arid areas, and deserts.

Rheas are herbivores, meaning they eat plants. However, they may occasionally eat insects.

The strong urge to migrate, particularly felt by birds during specific seasons.

Birds that are born helpless and rely heavily on their parents for care, including food, warmth, and protection. They are born with closed eyes and limited mobility.

Birds that are born relatively independent and can walk, run, or swim shortly after hatching. They have open eyes and a downy covering.

A mating system where birds pair up and raise young together, even if they may engage in extra-pair copulations.

A mating system where one male mates with multiple females.

Major migration routes used by birds, often forming rivers of birds in the sky.

The four main North American flyways are the Atlantic, Mississippi, Central, and Pacific flyways.

The largest egg is the Ostrich egg.

Gambel's quail have bluish-gray feathers on most of their body, while males have copper feathers on their heads, black faces, and white stripes above their eyes.

Gambel's quail can raise their body temperature to 104 degrees F to reduce water loss in hot desert environments.

The eared grebe belongs to the grebe family of water birds.

A bird order that includes chickens, turkeys, quail and pheasants. They are heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds with blunt wings.

Wild turkeys are large birds native to the Americas that can weigh over 30 pounds.

Male wild turkeys have distinctive fleshy wattles and are larger and more colorful than the females.

Wild turkeys prefer forests with scattered openings like pastures, fields, and orchards.

Wild turkeys eat a variety of foods, including plants and insects.

The distinctive fleshy protuberance that hangs from the top of a male turkey's beak.

Galliformes are found worldwide, except in extreme deserts and icecaps.

Male wild turkeys have a distinctive fleshy wattle or protuberance that hangs from the top of the beak (called a snood).

Galliformes are one of only two types of modern birds proven to have existed alongside dinosaurs in the Mesozoic era.

A large, robust sandpiper with gray legs, a short, straight bill, gray plumage above with a white rump, and white below, with a distinctive white area above the lores and a narrow white eye ring.

Willets have a bold white and black stripe running the length of each wing, visible during flight.

A medium-sized shorebird with yellowish legs, a long, straight, dark bill, dark brown top, reddish underside, spotted throat and breast, barred flanks, and a black and white barred tail.

These birds live primarily in marshes.

Short, stocky shorebird.

Aquatic invertebrates.

Aquatic invertebrates, including insects, mollusks, crustaceans, and marine worms.

King penguins don't build nests; they incubate their eggs by carrying them on top of their feet under their belly.

King penguins breed on subantarctic islands at the northern edge of Antarctica, including South Georgia and other temperate islands.

An order of seabirds comprising albatrosses, petrels, shearwaters, and two families of storm petrels, known for their tubular nasal passages and distinctive bills.

A nickname for Procellariiform birds, referencing their distinctive tubular nasal passage.

A medium-large shearwater identified by its dark, almost black, plumage, with a silvery strip along the underwing visible in good light.

Shearwaters mostly eat fish, squid, and krill.

A mating system where a pair of birds forms a long-term bond, often during breeding season.

Smaller members of the Procellariiformes order have comb-like mandibles, called tomial plates, for filtering plankton from the water

Pigments produced by plants that give birds their bright yellow, orange, and red colors. Birds get these pigments by eating plants or animals that have eaten plants.

Pigments that create a range of colors from black to reddish brown and pale yellow in birds. They also make feathers stronger and more resistant to wear.

Pigments produced by modifying amino acids in birds. They create colors like pink, brown, red, and green, and fluoresce red under UV light.

Feathers that produce shimmering, changing colors due to the way light is refracted by their microscopic structure. This is similar to how a prism splits light into rainbow colors.

The main types of bird pigments are carotenoids, melanins, and porphyrins. Each pigment produces a unique range of colors and has different effects on the bird's feathers.

Bird feathers are colored for various reasons, including camouflage, attracting mates, signaling dominance, and protecting from wear and tear. Different pigments provide different colors and properties.

Bird feathers get their colors from pigments, like carotenoids, melanins, and porphyrins. These pigments are either produced by the bird or acquired through diet.

Carotenoids are pigments produced by plants that give birds bright yellow, orange, and red colors. Melanins create a range of colors from black to brown and yellow, and also make feathers stronger.

Brown pelicans dive headfirst from heights of up to 65 feet, expanding their throat pouch to trap fish.

Great blue herons, unlike cranes, have curved necks when in flight.

Great blue herons use two main fishing techniques: standing motionless or stalking their prey.

These birds form a clade within the Pelecaniformes order, closely related to herons, ibises, and spoonbills.

Brown Pelicans are found on the west and east coasts of the Americas.

The Great Blue Heron is the largest North American heron.

Polyandry is a mating system where one female mates with multiple males. This is uncommon in birds but is seen in the cassowary, tinamous, and some other species.

Tinamous are omnivores, which means they eat a variety of foods, including insects, seeds, fruits, and small animals.

Kiwis have a well-developed sense of smell, a rare adaptation for a bird. This plays a big role in detecting their prey, which they find mostly through smell.

Cassowaries are native to New Guinea and northeastern Australia, where they live in dense rainforests.

The Neognathae encompass a wide range of bird species, almost all of the birds we see today. They are characterized by a unique skeletal structure that distinguishes them from the Palaeognathae (which includes ostriches and other ancient orders).

A common adaptation is the ability to control water loss. Birds in hot, dry areas often have specialized ways of reducing water loss. This can include conserving water in their kidneys, using metabolic water from food, and even raising their body temperature.

Salt glands are adaptations for birds that spend a lot of time in the ocean, filtering excess salt from their bodies

Convergent evolution describes when two different species develop similar features because of similar environmental pressures, but NOT because of shared ancestry.

Adult Bald Eagles have white heads and tails, with dark brown bodies and wings. Their legs and bills are bright yellow.

Golden Eagles are found in open country, especially around mountains, hills, and cliffs. They use a variety of habitats ranging from arctic to desert, including tundra, shrublands, grasslands, coniferous forests, farmland, and areas along rivers and streams.

A mating system where one male mates with multiple females.

A distraction technique where the bird pretends to be injured to draw predators away from its nest.

The killdeer will use a variety of vocalizations and physical displays to lure predators away from its nest.

Open areas like sandbars, mudflats, and grazed fields, often found near towns, where they utilize lawns, driveways, athletic fields, and airports.

Aquatic invertebrates, small crustaceans, amphibians, snails, and tiny fish.

These birds are known for their distinctive broken-wing act, their slender build with a long, pointed tail and long wings, and their bright orange-buff rump.

Found in western United States, Central America, and southern South America.

The killdeer is a large plover with a characteristic large round head, large eye, and short bill. They are slender and lanky with a long, pointed tail and long wings. Their plumage is brownish-tan on top and white below, with two black bands on their chest and black and white patches on their brown face.