Foot morphology: Killing foot

Short or no primary extension

Accipitridae: 230+ spp.

Strigiformes: 200+ spp. Falconiformes: 60 spp.

Pandionidae: 1 species

Remember that species with killing feet also have carnivore bills

Foot morphology: Running footToes relatively short and thick, often padded; toenails typically short and blunt; hind toe reduced, elevated, or absent.

Tinamiformes (tinamous): 50 spp.

Galliformes: 230+ spp.

Burhinidae (thick-knees): 9 spp.

Otidiformes (bustards): 26 spp.

Sanderling: the most cursorial of the sandpipers, and the only one without a hind toe

Foot morphology: Running footToes relatively short and thick, often padded; toenails typically short and blunt; hind toe reduced, elevated, or absent.

Tinamiformes (tinamous): 50 spp.

Galliformes: 230+ spp.

Burhinidae (thick-knees): 9 spp.

Pteroclidiformes (sandgrouse): 16 spp.

Turnicidae (buttonquails; Charadriiformes): 16 spp.

Thinocoridae (seedsnipes; Charadriiformes): 4 spp.

Glareolidae (coursers; Charadriiformes): 15 spp.

Note how many of these species also have reduced tails

Kagu (Eurypygiformes): 1 species

Foot morphology: Climbing foot

Certhiidae: 8 spp.

Dendrocolaptinae (woodcreepers): 55 spp.

Picidae: 210 spp.

Sittidae: 25 spp.

Compared to perching foot: claws large, long, and more decurved. Hind toe especially long; in woodpeckers, one of the “front” toes points backwards.

Most species with climbing feet also have climbing tails, but beware nuthatches and other, which lack any tail modifications.

Foot morphology: Wading legsThis one is difficult to predict without context because many cursorial birds that do not wade also have long legs (but cursorial feet have additional adaptations). So, for wading feet, use in combination with bill morphology: wading legs are associated with fish-eaters and mud-probers, and are very long for the body size.

Ardeidae: most species

Threskiornithidae: 30 spp

Scolopacidae: many species

Aramidae (Limpkin; Gruiformes): 1 species

Ciconiidae: 19 spp.

Balaenicipitidae (Shoebill; Pelecaniformes): 1 species

Coloration: green plumage in tropical forest canopy

Psittaciformes: many species

Megalaima (Asian barbets)

Aulacorhynchus (toucans)

Calyptomena (broadbills)Pipreola (cotingas)

Chlorochrysa (tanagers)

Chloropseidae (leafbirds): 4 species

Turacos (Musophagiformes)

In the large family Estrildidae, the only species that are green are forest species in the genus Erythrura.

Coloration: green plumage in tropical forest canopy

Psittaciformes: many species

Megalaima (Asian barbets)

Vireolanius (Vireonidae) Jacamars (Galbulidae)

Tauraco (Musophagidae)

Trogonidae

Note that there is a continuum from these brilliant green species to those that are dull olive green, many of which occur in temperate zone, at least during summer. Only if they are bright green like these can you make a confident prediction.

Ptilinopus (Columbidae)

Note that not all species of tropical forest canopy are green, obviously! But of the world’s truly bright green species almost all are species of tropical forest canopy.

Coloration: dark ventral plumage in fish-eaters that feed in shaded water or at night; white ventral plumage for the opposite.

Kingfishers: Green-and-rufous Kingfisher of shaded river banks vs. Pied Kingfisher of open lakes and rivers.

Herons: Agami Heron of forested streams vs. white subspecies of Great Blue Heron of sandy Caribbean beaches.

Terns: Brown Noddy, which frequently forages at night vs. diurnal Royal Tern.

Coloration: striped backs in grassland birds

Not grassland Grassland

Odontophoridae

Notes: Do all grassland birds have striped backs? No. Are all birds with striped backs from grasslands? No. But if you see a bird with a back pattern like the birds on the right, with pale stripes emphasized by darker borders, there is a high probability that it is a grassland bird.

Scolopacidae

Phasianidae

Coloration: striped backs in grassland birdsOn the left are non-grassland species and on the right grassland species from the same family, sometimes same genus

Icteridae

Motacillidae (Anthus)

Cardinalidae

Furnariidae

Emberizidae

Furnariidae (Asthenes)

Cisticolidae (Cisticola)

Troglodytidae

Tyrannidae

Coloration: Gloger’s Rule

Gloger’s Rule applies only to geographic variation WITHIN a species the range of which spans a humidity gradient. Therefore, do NOT mention Gloger’s Rule with respect to single specimens without comparison to other specimens throughout that species’ range.

Song Sparrow subspecies from driest portion of range to wettest, left to right