Oxbow At Home: Friends of a Feather

Overview

• Students will learn about the parts of a bird and the characteristics that different birds have.  
• Students will learn about some of adaptations that birds have.
• Students will learn about the common birds of Georgia and will learn how to identify birds with the use of binoculars and field guides. 

Outline

1. Introduction
2. What makes a bird
3. Bird Adaptations
4. Virtual Bird Watching
5. Reflection and Review
6. Knowledge Challenge

Grade Level and Standards

3rd Grade:

• S3L1.b. Construct an explanation of how external features and adaptations (camouflage, hibernation, migration, mimicry) of animals allow them to survive in their habitat.
• S3L1.c. Use evidence to construct an explanation of why some organisms can thrive in one habitat and not in another.

4th Grade:

• S4L1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the roles of organisms and the flow of energy within an ecosystem.

5th Grade:

• S5L1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to group organisms using scientific classification procedures.
• S5L1.a. Develop a model that illustrates how animals are sorted into groups (vertebrate and invertebrate) and how vertebrates are sorted into groups (fish, amphibian, reptile, bird, and mammal) using data from multiple sources.

1. Feet

Birds usually have four toes on each of two feet.  They use their feet to walk, stand, hop, perch, carry things, grab, prey, swim, wade, and dig.

What are the five different feet that birds have?

(perching, climbing, gripping, running, and swimming)

2. Beaks and Bills

Birds use their beaks to get food, drink water, tear or break food into pieces, gather nesting material, preen, feed babies, and protect them from enemies.

3. Feathers

What do only birds have that no other animal has?

FEATHERS!

Feathers are unique feature only to birds.  There are no other animals on the entire world that have them.  Feathers are one of the most complex structures found in all animals.  They are formed from keratin, same protein which makes up scales, beaks, and claws (and fingernails in humans).  Keratin proteins develop during the growth of cells in the epidermis or outermost layer of skin. Once a feather is formed, it is inert and essentially and dead outgrowth of the skin. 

4. Air Sacs

A bird’s lungs appear to be small compared to a human’s lungs.  However, in addition to the lungs, there are 7-9 pairs of air sacs, depending on the type of bird, which communicates with the lungs and extends throughout the body.  These air sacs act as reservoirs to hold oxygenated air until it is used. By the time the breath of air finally leaves their bodies, it is depleted of oxygen. So in comparison, a bird could not save another bird’s life through CPR like a human could.  A human only uses a small percentage of the oxygen in the air we inhale, so when we exhale our breath is still rich in oxygen and could be used to save another person’s life.  A bird’s exhaled breath is completely depleted so it could not provide oxygen to another bird, plus would they be able to get a tight seal around the other bird’s beak?

5. Crop

This crop is similar to a pouch for chipmunks.  The crop stores food that will later be digested by the bird.  It is located at the bottom of the bird’s esophagus. It allows birds to eat really fast and then digest the food later.  This can help decrease the exposed to predators while feeding. The crop is found in other animals such as insects, leeches, and earthworms. 

6. Gizzard

The gizzard’s main function is to grind and digest tough food.  Birds will sometimes eat small rocks and grit to help the gizzard digest food.  The grit grinds in the gizzard and smashed up the food. The gizzard is the second part of the bird’s stomach.

Bird Observations

• Powerful predator that eats birds, mammals larger than itself (even skunks!), frogs, mice, and other small prey.
• Is crepuscular, meaning that it is active at dusk and dawn, even though most people think they are nocturnal.
• One of the most common owls in North America, and can be found in almost any habitat

Who am I?

Snowy Owl
Eastern Bluebird
Great Horned Owl
Green Tree Frog (just joking!)

Answer:

Great Horned Owl

Bird Observations

• This bright red bid is a familiar sight to many!  Did you know that the males are red, while the females are much more brown in color?  Why do you think that is?
• This bird does not migrate, which is why you see them year round.
• This bird is known for being very territorial, meaning they will defend their territory or habitat from other birds.  They will even attack their own reflection in glass!

Who am I?

Northern Mockingbird
Northern Cardinal
Northern Flicker
North Pole

Answer:

Northern Cardinal

Bird Observations

• This bird is the largest type of heron in North America
• While flying, this bird will curl its neck in a “S” shape
• When hunting, it will stand very still, like a statue and stab its prey with a long and sharp beak
• This bird can be found in both freshwater and saltwater habitats

Who am I?

Sandhill Crane
Great Egret
Great Blue Heron
Great Balls of Fire

Answer:

Great Blue Heron

Bird Observations

• During the winter months, this bird will hoard its food and will store many seeds over the season
• This bird nests in tree cavities, or holes in trees, but do not make their own holes.  Instead will use a tree cavity made by other birds, such as woodpeckers.
• This bird will use hair they pluck from other animals (raccoons, mice, woodchucks, squirrels, opossums, and even humans) to line their nest.

Who am I?

Northern Mockingbird
Tufted Titmouse
Carolina Chickadee
North Carolina

Answer:

Tufted Titmouse

Bird Observations

• During the winter months, this bird will hoard its food and will store many seeds over the season
• This bird nests in tree cavities, or holes in trees, but do not make their own holes.  Instead will use a tree cavity made by other birds, such as woodpeckers.
• This bird will use hair they pluck from other animals (raccoons, mice, woodchucks, squirrels, opossums, and even humans) to line their nest.

Who am I?

Great Horned Owl
Red-headed Woodpecker
Cedar Waxwing
Candle Wax

Answer:

Cedar Waxwing

Interested in learning more about birds?  Make a bird feeder for your yard!  This way you can observe more birds!

Now that you have a bird feeder, here are some things to think about:

1. What type of food do you need to feed birds?
2. What type of birds eat only seeds:
   1. Herbivore
   2. Carnivore
   3. Omnivore
3. What adaptations can you observe on birds?
4. Do some birds have camouflage?  How do the blend into their environment?