![]() Most of the over 200 different species known to us today are migratory, with the exception of the tropical wading birds that would migrate only in rare climatic conditions. Wading birds eat fish and various living creatures that exist in shallow bodies of water. As of today over 21 albatross species were identified.Ĭormorant – medium to large bird, excellent diver, migratory. ![]() They have a long life expectancy and there are some individuals that were identified to have lived more than 50 years. Albatrosses are colonial nesters that set their nests mostly in isolated islands. His huge and powerful wings allow it to fly long distances for long periods of time. The albatross comes to land mainly for the purpose of breeding. Some of the seabirds, like the albatross, spend most of their life in the open sea. Seabirds have flexible webbed feet which help them maneuver themselves efficiently in water, enabling them to gain traction while they are taking off and to have a better control when landing in water. It is generally accepted that water birds can be classified into 3 different groups: Seabirds, Wading birds and Shorebirds. As a result they do not loose body temperature and they move smoother in water. All birds have them, but they serve a more critical and important role with water birds. These materials are waterproof and also act like insulators. Preening glands – These glands secrete fats and a wax-type material that the birds spread, with the help of their bills, along their feathers.The birds then clear it out by way of sneezing. Specific glands in their bodies are able to extract the excess salt from their system into an area besides their sinuses. This water contains a fair amount of salt. Salt glands – Birds, mainly those that spend most of their time in the open sea, have no alternative other than drinking the ocean water.Long flexible necks – many water birds, primarily the wading birds, have long flexible necks that help them to hunt fish more efficiently.Birds that need to swim or dive in water have a better control of their movements when equipped with short webbed feet, which they use for pedaling. Short legs on the other hand work efficiently with webbed feet. This group includes storks, herons, egrets, ibis and many more. They allow them to stand in the shallow water and to spot fish from a higher angle thus to minimize reflection of sun rays in the water. Long legs/short legs – long legs are a great advantage for birds that find their food in shallow bodies of water.Also, during landing it helps them to almost ski in water before they reach a complete stop. It helps also during taking off from water by helping to gain speed. They have better control while swimming owing to the fact that their webbed feet help to push more water with the wider surface of the connected toes. Geese, pelicans, cormorants are examples of birds that acquired webbed feet. Webbed feet – webbed feet help birds to maneuver themselves better in water.As a result one can find birds that prefer to concentrate in muddy areas or marshes, some others will prefer sandy shores, and others will select rocky beaches. Each bird type will select the location that will allow it to extract its food in the easiest way. Long bills – these birds’ bills can be strait, curved, pointy, sharp, thin, thick, narrow or wide.For example, the following are a number of characteristics that are of particular interest: One way of classifying water birds would be to relate to those characteristics that enable the birds to adapt to their living habitat. On the other hand, there are some water birds that will have them all. These characteristics can appear in some water birds while not in others. There are certain characteristics that are common among these birds. Black Stork Characteristics of Water BirdsĪnswer: Water birds are birds that prefer a water-based habitat.
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