Birds for Kids

  NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS PELICAN A wonderful bird is the Pelican His bill can hold more than his belican He can hold in his beak enough food for a week But I'm damned if I see how the helican ! - Ogden Nash A basketful of goodies for the little ones! Oh yes! Mamma pelican knows just what her chicks need ...breakfast, lunch, dinner and a few extra tidbits thrown in.  The rubbery pouch attached to the bill can store a lot. This is actually a myth. In reality, pelicans do not store food for long periods in their bills. In fact the bills are more like fishing nets that swallow gallons of water along with fish and turtles. The excess water is drained out by tilting the head to the side and contracting the pouch muscles. The prey is swallowed whole. Pelicans also prey on pigeons, frogs, crabs and anything else they find edible on the shores. However, when the chicks are young, they do carry the food to the nest on the shores in their very flexible pouches.  How do they hunt? Pel...

  NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS FLAMINGO Pink flames bursting across the sky and floating like clouds!  You've just spotted a flock of flamingos in their pale blue serene habitat. These tall long legged birds wade gracefully in shallow waters. Once it stirs up the muddy bottom, it twists its long snake like neck and dips underwater holding its head upside down while it eats shrimps, plants and mollusks. The large strong black tipped beak has comb like structures on its sides to filter out waste materials and water. All flamingos are born white or grey but Greater flamingos like the one in the picture above are brilliantly coloured. They fly over long distances from icy regions in winter to warmer places around the tropics in search of food. Why are the feathers such a rich orange and pink? The colour comes from beta-carotene, which is a pigment found in the food they eat  : algae, larvae and brine shrimp. As the chicks grow, the colour of their wings changes according to the food...

  NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS FOR KIDS COCKATOO A golden crown on a cocky head! You've just met a Cockatoo, a kind of parrot. Cockatoos twist their heads cockily with that flaming crest bobbing on their heads. In fact, they arrange their feathers to communicate. Raised feathers tell you that a cockatoo is excited while the feathers may lie flat when the bird is eating or relaxing. The rest of the body is white or grey while the crest has brilliant feathers.  They are intelligent, friendly and learn things fast, which is why many people like to keep them as pets. Pet owners feel they are living with a 2 year old child with temper tantrums and plain silliness. A cockatoo makes funny noises and hangs upside down just for fun. In the wild, they live in large noisy flocks which helps them to watch out for predators. If they are warned, a loud call erupts with a lot of squawking and screaming. 'Cachinnating Cockatoo' is a term that is used today for noisy disturbing laughter. Some cock...

  NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS FOR KIDS IBIS Who's that poking around the pond? Ibis is a medium sized wading bird that lives in shallow bays, marshes, lakes and lagoons looking around for food in the muddy water. It's long down curving beak is a great help in poking around. Red Ibises have brilliant scarlet feathers tipped with black. Ibises are found in different colours, the most common one being white with a long reddish beak. Some have glossy brown, grey or black feathers with long spindly feet and webbed toes. There are 28 species of this bird. They live in flocks around all the warm regions of the world nesting around water bodies. Food like earthworms, small fish, insects, frogs  and mollusks are plentiful in such areas.  What do the nests look like? They look like a pile of sticks on tree branches, bushes, shrubs or banks. The male ibis is very protective of the nest. They guard it from other ibises stealing the sticks or making advances at the female ibis. A female lay...

NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS - TOUCAN Can you see that large colourful bill that's too big for the head. Yes, a toucan's bill is four times the size of its head. and almost as long as its body. That must be difficult for the toucan to carry around. But in reality, the bill is actually quite light  and is made of keratin, the same material that your skin and hair is made of. A toucan uses its bill to poke into hollows and make a place for itself to sleep as you can see in the picture above. Why is a large bill useful to a toucan? * It helps a toucan to reach for berries and nuts that are far away on a branch or to crack and peel fruits. * It helps a toucan to dig into hollows and make a nest for itself.* With a bill so long, it can grab eggs to eat from the nests of other birds. * Most importantly, it can attract a mate.  * It can also scare away other animals or birds that may try to hunt a toucan. *  The edges of the bill are like a saw and help to break down the food and throw...

NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS - OSTRICHES Ostrich Ostriches are the largest and heaviest birds in the world. They are 7 to 9 feet tall and weigh around 300 pounds or as heavy as two or three people together. This fierce looking bird has large round eyes in a small head held up on a large thin neck. The eyes are almost 2 inches in diameter, the largest among birds.  Since it is too heavy to fly, it can run as fast as 43 miles per hour or as fast as a small car. Ostrich : Open Wings When does an Ostrich open its wings? A male  ostrich with black and white feathers opens its wings while courting a female.   It also opens its wings to use as a rudder for changing directions while running.  They also open their wings and hold them sideways to scare the opponent when they feel they are in danger. But most of the times they run away and try to hide by laying their head and neck flat on the ground. If threatened they attack with hard kicks. They can kick so hard that a per...

NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS - HUMMING BIRDS H umming Birds are the smallest birds in the world. In fact they are smaller than sparrows and only as big as your thumb. There are 350 species in different colours and hues. They can flap their wings around 50 times in a second. When they dive they flap even harder about 200 times per second. they can even twist and turn their wings in a figure 8 pattern. In fact this fast flapping helps them to hover at a spot. All you can hear is a low buzzing sound which is why they are called humming birds. Their tiny size makes them easier to catch by lizards, snakes, frogs and larger birds. But because they are so tiny that they can hind behind a leaf or inside a large flower. They drink mostly nectar from flowers but may eat seeds and small insects too. Spiders and spiders' eggs are also a favourite food. The long narrow needle like bill helps them to lick and feed. They may be tiny but they can fly 6000 km. for migrating to warmer regions for breeding....

NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS - SWANS Swans are among the largest of flying birds and live near the water, building untidy nests on the banks, Males called cobs are heavier than the females who are called pens. A  baby swan is called a cygnet. Black or white, they have many layers of feathers and a wingspan of about 10 ft. Their webbed feet are black which they use to  paddle fast underneath while they seem to be floating on the water. There are several species like Trumpeter swans, Cygnus swans and Mute swans. Black swans are found around Australia and New Zealand while white swans are more common in other areas north of the equator. Let me tell you an interesting fact here... Swans that live in the Northern Hemisphere (above the equator) have white feathers or plumage while those that live in the Southern Hemisphere (below the equator) have black and white feathers. Swans feed on aquatic plants, grains and insects. Their long necks help to dip deep into the water to snap off stems, ...

NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS - PEACOCKS T his large fierce looking bird struts proudly and gracefully with its long beautiful tail feathers trailing behind. Feathers have 'eye spots' in blue, green and yellow if you look at the design. In fact, only male peacocks are colourful and larger in size than the plain brown peahens or the female peacocks. Males use their colours along with loud shrills or calls to attract females who will later lay eggs. Male peacocks open their feathers and dance  before it rains because that is their mating season. Both species together are called peafowls. Peafowls build nests in trees but feed on the ground. They can fly short distances and like to wander in open fields. They are omnivores and eat plants, flowers, fruits, insects, reptiles and other tiny animals. They live in hot tropical regions of Asia and Africa. In fact peacock designs are seen all over India, Burma, Persia, etc. because they look so royal.  It is the national bird of India. A peahen...

NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS -  Penguins                              Adelie Penguin                       Emperor   Penguin                                           P enguins  are f ligh tl es s seabirds that walk  upright on short legs and webbed feet. The back and wings are black while the belly is white making them look  like gentlemen in black coats.  Emperor penguins, the largest species have patches of yellow on their beaks, ears and chest. Adelie penguins are the smallest.  There are around 18 species of penguins in all.  Mo st penguins like the  Emperor, Adelie, Chinstrap and Gentoo penguins  live in and around Antarctica near the South pole while all live below the equator.   H...

NATURAL WORLD : BIRDS -  HARPY EAGLE Hey! Who's that guy in an eagle costume    staring down at me? F ound in Central and South America, Harpy Eagles are the largest eagles in the world. At first glance, they look like humans dressed up in a fancy dress eagle costume. Feathers stand up like a crown on the head. About 3 to 5 feet tall, they have sharp black eyes and a large black hooked beak. The talons are larger than that of a grizzly bear's. No wonder they look like monsters. The body is white while wings are black with white flecks. The females are larger in size than the males. Pointed talons which are 3-4 inches long, help them to prey on sloths, monkeys and snakes, their main foods. This prevents these animals from eating smaller animals and birds. Because of this eggs of small birds remain safe. This keeps a balance in the numbers of different living things in the forest. So you can see that harpy eagles like lions and humans are on top of the food chain. Wh...