What characteristics do all birds have in common?.
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Transcript of What characteristics do all birds have in common?.
Different kinds of feathers:
Contour Feather: one of the large feathers on a bird that gives shape to a bird’s body
Flight Feathers: long contour feathers that extend beyond the body on the wings and tail
Help the bird to balance and steer
Contour feathers in general have a central shaft and projections called barbs
Down Feathers: short, fluffy feathers that are specialized to trap heat and keep the bird warm
Found right next to the bird’s skin at the base of the contour feathers
Are soft and flexible
Because they need energy for flight and
they are endotherms, birds need a lot of food.
Each day, the average bird eats food equal to about a quarter of its body weight
This is why the phrase “You’re eating like a bird” is incorrect….bird eat a lot!
Bills – shaped to help birds feed quickly and
efficiently A bird’s bill is shaped depending on what it eats
Example: A duck’s bill acts like a kitchen strainer,
separating out seeds and tiny animals from muddy
pond water
Crop: an internal storage tank for storing food inside the body after swallowing it
A muscular pouch near the throat
Gizzard: a thick-walled, muscular part of the stomach that squeezes and grinds partially digested food
Birds have one to make up for the fact that they do not have teeth!
The gizzard does the same grinding function for birds that your teeth do for you
Keeping conditions stable
Being endotherms, birds need to keep warm
To maintain their body temperature, they use energy from food and feathers to trap heat
Down feathers are specialized to trap heat, as they are found right next to a bird’s skin
Birds Reproduction
Have internal fertilization
Lay amniotic eggs
In most species, a female lays eggs in a nest
Bird eggs will only develop at a temperature close to the body temperature of the parent bird
A parent bird usually incubates the eggs by sitting on them to keep them warm
Parents take care of their babies until they learn how to fly