The Seedcracker

The Seedcracker The Seedcracker A bird’s beak is very important in helping the animal get food. This chaffinch eats seeds. So it has a short, strong beak to crack open nuts and seed cases. This allows the bird to get to the nutrient-rich seeds inside. Chaffinch Cone-shaped beak A Wader on Dry Land A Wader on Dry Land Even though the woodcock has a long beak like birds that wade in the water for their food, it mostly eats earthworms and insects on land. Its long, pointed beak helps it find these little creatures— and pluck them from the ground for a good meal! Long beak for unearthing Sensitive tip for insect larvae and detecting worms earthworms in ground Woodcock An Underwater Sieve In living bird, upper bill has a fringe to trap food Flamingo An Underwater Sieve Flamingoes feed by lowering their head so their beak is upside down in water. Then the bird moves its head from side to side and forces water through its beak. Tiny filters inside its beak acts like a sieve, or strainer, Lower bill pumps to remove food particles from the water against water. upper bill A Meat-eater’s Beak A Meat-eater’s Beak Birds of prey, like the kestrel, catch and eat other animals. Their beaks usually have a sharp hook on the end. This helps the bird tear their meal into pieces that can be more easily swallowed. Kestrel Hook A Fruit-eater’s Beak A Fruit-eater’s Beak Nostril Parrots eat both fruit and seeds so their beak has to do double duty. A hook at the end lets the parrot pull tasty fruit apart. But the base of its beak is strong (like the finch’s!) so it can crack open tough seeds as well. Parrot Area where seeds are cracked open Hook for grasping fruit A Duck with “Teeth” A Duck with “Teeth” As you know, reptiles and mammals have teeth made of bone. Birds don’t have teeth like this. However, some birds, like the mergansers, have tooth-like notches on the sides of their beaks. These “beak teeth” come in handy when it comes to catching—and holding onto—fish. Mergansers Teeth for catching fish, made out of the horny material of the beak Bird Beaks Teacher Notes The Seedcracker The Seedcracker The Seedcracker A bird’s beak is very important in A bird's beak produces the greatest force nearest its base. Birds, like chaffinches, helping the animal get food. This which chaffinch eats seeds. So it has a short, strong beak to crack open nuts and seed cases. This allows the bird to get to the nutrient-rich live on hard seeds, have short, cone-shaped beaks so that they can crack open their food seeds inside. Chaffinch with as much force as possible. Finches deftly remove the cases of seeds with their Cone-shaped beak beaks before swallowing them. There are over 150 species of finches. Amazingly, some finches have bills that can exert more crushing force than a human hand. A Wader on Dry Land A Wader on Dry Land A Wader on Dry Land The woodcock's extremely long beak is typical of waders - the group of birds that Even though the woodcock has a long beak like birds that wade in the water for their food, it mostly eats earthworms and insects on land. It’s long, pointed beak helps it find these includes plovers and sandpipers. But instead of using its beak to feed on shore animals, little creatures— and pluck them from the ground for a good meal! like most waders, the woodcock uses it equally as well on “dry” land. Its principal food Long beak for unearthing Sensitive tip for insect larvae and detecting worms earthworms in ground Woodcock is earthworms and insect larvae, and its long, pointed beak enables the woodcock to pluck these from damp ground. An Underwater Sieve An Underwater Sieve In living bird, upper bill has a fringe to trap food Flamingo The flamingo has one of the most specialized beaks of any bird. With its head pointing downward, the flamingo feeds by dipping its beak in water and using it to sift out An Underwater Sieve nutritious water animals and plants. The lower bill moves up and down to pump water Flamingoes feed by lowering their head so their beak is upside down in water. Then the bird moves its head from side to side and forces water through its beak. Tiny filters inside against the top bill, where a fringe of fine slits traps the food. its beak acts like a sieve, or strainer, Lower bill pumps to remove food particles from the water against water. upper bill A Meat-eater’s Beak A Meat-eater’s Beak A Meat-eater’s Beak Birds of prey, like the kestrel, catch The kestrel has a hooked beak typical of falcons and other birds of prey. The hook and eat other animals. Their beaks usually have a sharp hook on the end. This helps the bird tear their meal into pieces that can be more easily swallowed. enables these meat-eating birds to pull apart animals that are too big to be swallowed whole. Kestrel Hook A Fruit-eater’s Beak A Fruit-eater’s Beak A Fruit-eater’s Beak Nostril Parrots eat both fruit and seeds so Wild parrots live on fruit and seeds and have a “combination” beak to allow them to their beak has to do double duty. A hook at the end lets the parrot pull tasty fruit apart. But the base of its beak is strong (like the finch’s!) so it can crack open tough seeds as well. make the most of their food. A parrot uses the hook at the beak's tip to pull at the pulp of fruit; it uses the jaws near the base of its beak to crack open seeds and reach the Parrot Area where seeds are cracked open kernels. Parrots are unusual in the bird world in the way they also use their feet to hold Hook for grasping fruit and turn their food while they crack it open. A Duck with “Teeth” A Duck with “Teeth” A Duck with “Teeth” As you know, reptiles and mammals Unlike mammals and reptiles, birds do not have true teeth that are made of bone. have teeth made of bone. Birds don’t have teeth like this. However, some birds, like the mergansers, have tooth-like notches on the sides of their beaks. These “beak teeth” However, some birds have evolved structures that are very like teeth. The mergansers, come in handy when it comes to catching—and holding onto—fish. Mergansers for example, have tooth-like notches on the sides of their beaks. They use these beak Teeth for catching fish, made out of the horny material of the beak teeth to catch fish, both in fresh water and out at sea. .

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