unit 8 reptiles and birds
DESCRIPTION
SECTION 1: REPTILE -A reptile is a cold-blooded vertebrate that has lungs, dry, scaly skin and lays eggs with a leathery shell.TRANSCRIPT
UNIT 8REPTILES AND BIRDS
SECTION 1: REPTILE
-A reptile is a cold-blooded vertebrate that has lungs, dry, scaly skin and lays eggs with a leathery
shell.
AGE OF REPTILES -Reptiles appeared more than 300 million years ago. -Believed to arose from amphibians. -Dinosaurs are reptiles that lived on the earth millions
of years ago during the period known as the “Age of Reptiles”. (Mesozoic Period – 245 to 65 million years ago when all the large vertebrates on Earth were reptiles.)
-(One theory believes that dinosaurs were warm-blooded reptiles.)
-Over 300 species of dinosaurs have been identified and fossils have been found on every continent on earth.
-Dinosaur examples: 1. Brachiosaurus – 23 m (75.4 ft) long, 12 m
(39.4 ft) tall, weighed 77,000 kg (169,000 lbs) 2. Deinonychus – carnivore, walked on hind
legs, sharp claws to rip prey apart 3. Triceratops – body of armor, plant eater 4. Ichthyosaurs – swam in water and resembled
a dolphin 5. Pterosaurs – flew like birds
DINOSAUR EXTINCTION HYPOTHESIS
-3/4 of all animal speices and most dinosaurs became extinct 65 million years ago (Cretaceous Period).
-Meteorite-Impact Hypothesis was proposed to explain the extinction of dinosaurs. It says that millions of years ago a giant meteorite crashed into the earth. The impact of the collision raised dust that blocked the sun’s rays and probably caused the earth to become colder. Plant life began to die, and many animal species, including the dinosaurs, became extinct.
-When investigating the extinction of dinosaurs, scientist studied rock layers throughout the world that date to about 65 million years ago and found that these layers contain iridium, a substance uncommon on earth, but is common in meteorites.
-Scientist have developed computer models that test the hypothesis by simulating conditions during the time the dinosaurs went extinct. They found that it would have taken a 10 km diameter meteorite to cause mass extinction.
-A crater located on the Yucatan Peninsula is southern Mexico was recently discovered and dates approximately 65 million years ago and is about 110 miles across.
REPTILE CHARACTERISTICS-Reptiles are adapted for life on land.-All reptiles have 4 limbs except snakes.
Integumentary System:-The reptiles skin is tough, thick, dry, and scaly
making it waterproof and protects it from drying out. (The surface cells of the skin fill with keratin which is also found in the skin of humans.)
-Respiratory System:• Breath through lungs• Lungs are filled by expanding the rib cage
-Circulatory System:• Double loop system
a. Pulmonary Loop (heart to lungs)b. Systemic Loop (heart to body)
• Have either 3 chambered (turtles, snakes, and lizards) or 4 chambered heart (crocodiles and alligators). Chambers are divided by septum. (In most reptiles the lower chamber of the 3-chambered heart is partially divided.)
-Nervous System:• Brain is about the same size as amphibians but more
complex• Strong sense of sight and hearing• Reptiles use a Jacobson’s organ which is a
specialized sense organ for smell located on the roof of their mouth. Snake gather chemicals for this organ with their tongue. Crocodiles and most turtles lack jacobson’s organ.
• Pit viper snakes (ex: rattlesnake, copperhead) can detect heat through a heat sensitive pit below their eye.
-Reproductive System:• Internal fertilization - joining of egg and
sperm inside the body of an animal.• Development is external inside a tough,
flexible, leathery shell. (The leathery shell protects against drying out but allows gases to enter and leave.)
• Oviparity – the production of a shell around the egg which is laid in the environment (all reptiles, birds, and 3 mammals)
• The reptile egg's leathery covering prevents the contents of the egg from drying out.
• Gases can pass through tiny opening in the shell allowing the reptile to breath.
• The yellowish yolk of the egg contains stored food to nourish the developing reptile.
REPTILE DIVERSITY-4 orders of reptiles: 1. Order Chelonia - Turtles 2. Order Crocodilia – Alligators, crocodiles,
caimans 3. Order Squamata - Lizards and snakes 4. Order Rhynchocephalia - Dinosaurs and
pterodactyls
TURTLES and TORTOISES-Order Chelonia -250 species-has 2 hard, bony shells that cover and protect
the body -Top shell is call carapace, Lower shell is
called plastron.-(Vertebrae and ribs are usually fused to the
carapace.-(Some turtles can pull their head and legs
inside the shell for protection.)
-Can live on land or in water, but must return to land to lay eggs.
-Turtle usually live in water. Ex: Sea Turtle-Tortoises live only on land. Ex: Galapagos
Tortoise-Tortoises have strong, short clawed legs used
for walking and digging. Sea turtles have clawless flippers that aid in swimming.
CROCODILES AND ALLIGATORS-Order Crocodilia -Most closely related to the dinosaurs of all
reptiles.-21 species-Live in shallow water of tropical streams,
rivers, and swamps -Can reach 6 m in length.-Have large, strong jaws with sharp teeth.
-All carnivores (feed on fish, turtles, or land animals that come to the water to drink)
-Have large tail for swimming.-Unlike other groups of reptiles they have a 4
chambered heart.-Crocodiles and alligators can be identified
from one another by the shape of their snout. An alligator has a broad, rounded snout. A crocodile has a narrow pointed snout. Also with the mouth closed the alligator only has a few teeth showing and the crocodile has most of its teeth showing.
SNAKES AND LIZARDS-Order Squamata -5500 species (3000 lizards, 2500 snakes)-The Komodo dragon (a species of lizard) is the
largest lizard in existence today. (3 meters long, 160 kg) (it can eat goats or deer)
Komoto Dragon
-Both have a lower and upper jaws loosely joined to the skull that can unhinge making the mouth opening very large. This enables them to swallow a fairly large animal.
FEEDING (Slide 1)
FEEDING (Slide 2)
FEEDING (Slide 3)
-Lizards have 4 legs, movable eyelids, slender body, long tails, clawed toes, forked tongue, and ear openings. Ex: Iguanas, Chameleons, Geckos
-Lizards have special adaptations such as: a. changing color to blend with their
surrounding. Ex: chameleons b. Autotomy – ability to detach tail and grow
a new one (this allows them to escape from predators)
-Snakes have no legs, no eyelids and no ears.
-Snakes are deaf and have poor eyesight so they detect by tasting the air with their tongue or detecting body heat through pits on their head.
-They shed their skin periodically by the process of molting.
-Most snakes are nonvenomious.-Many snakes are helpful to humans because
they eat insect and rodent pests.
-Venomious snakes kill their prey by injecting them with a poison known as venom that flows through long, hollow, pointed teeth called fangs.
-South Carolina contains 4 species of venomious snakes.
1. Coral Snake 2. Copperhead 3. Rattlesnake 4. Cottonmouth or Water Moccasin
CORAL SNAKE
COPPERHEAD
YOUNG COPPERHEAD(with yellow tail)
TIMBER RATTLESNAKE
TIMBER RATTLESNAKE
DIAMONDBACK RATTLESNAKE
DIAMONDBACK RATTLESNAKE
COTTONMOUTH
COTTONMOUTH
COTTONMOUTH FANGS
COTTONMOUTH
DINOSAURS-Order Rhynchocephalia-all extinct except for 2 species of tuataras.
Tuataras – last living dinosaur
Tuataras – last living dinosaur
Tuataras – last living dinosaur
-A bird is a warm-blooded (homeothermic) reptile-like animal with an outer covering of feathers, two legs used for walking or perching, and front limbs modified into wings that usually do not have claws.
-Birds are the only vertebrates that have feathers.
-Feathers of modified scales.
SECTION 2: BIRDS
-3 types of feathers: 1. Contour feather is a large feather that
gives a bird its streamlined shape. (These wings cut through the air and glide on air currents.
-The main stem of a contour feather is called a shaft.
-The flat part attached to the shaft is called the vane.
2. Down feather is a short, fluffy feather found close to a bird's body and act as insulation. (They trap air forming a warm layer next to the birds body.)
-Down feathers are the main covering of young birds.
3. Powder feathers are important to birds that live on or in water.
-They release a fine white powder that repels water and keeps it from entering the down feathers.
EVOLUTION OF BIRDS-Birds are very similar to dinosaurs. (3 Examples
include: S-shaped neck, a unique ankle joint, and hollow bones.)
-Birds are thought to evolve from small, fast running carnivore dinosaurs of the Jurassic period (208-144 million) years ago.
-Oldest known bird fossil is the species Archaeopteryx lithographica, which is 150 million years old.
-(Archaeopteryx like birds had feathers, hollow bones, fused collarbone (wishbone). Like dinosaurs it contained teeth, claws on forelimbs, and long bony tail.)
CHARACTERISTICS OF BIRDS-Birds are adapted for low weight and high
energy-Birds fly due to low body weight compared
to the size of their body.
-Birds have 3 adaptations for flying: 1. Large Powerful flight muscles to flap wings.
(These muscles make up 50% of the body weight in some birds.)
2. Low body weight because of hollow skeleton filled with air spaces. (Skeleton is also strong due to crisscross structure inside the bone.)
3. Air sacs-structures attached to the lungs of a bird and provide a constant supply of oxygen used in respiration and function in cooling the bird's body during flight.
-(When the bird inhales, air enters lungs andair sacs. When it exhales, air leaves the lungs and air moves from the air sacs into lungs. So lungs fill with air when the bird both inhales and exhales. This increases the amount of air available to the lungs providing more energy and cooling the body.)
-Birds that swim, walk, or not fly have modified feet with toes (ostrich), webbed feet (duck), and wings that act as flippers (penguins).
FEEDING-Being warmblooded and flying demands
great amounts of energy.-Birds have a very high metabolic rate and
burn many calories just keeping warm.-Birds eat large amount of food at one time.
(They have to store food for long migrations. Pigeons eat 65% of their body weight each day. And hummingbirds eat twice their body weight daily in nectar.)
-Have strong beak and no teeth.
-The beak is adapted to the type of food thebird eats.
-(Woodpecker eats insects and bores into tree trunks; Cardinal eats seeds; hawks eat meat)
-Beak Adaptations:• Carnivorus birds have modified razor
sharp talons and pointed beaks.• Ex: Eagles, hawks• Insect eating birds have beaks that have
been adapted to dig or pick insects out of trees or ground. (Usually long pointed beaks)Ex: Woodpecker, finch
• Nectar feeding birds-Long probing beaks that have a tongue equipped with brush like structures used for lapping up nectar. Ex: Hummingbird
• Fruit eating birds-Short stout beaks or long sharp beaks pending on the fruit they eat. Ex: finch
• Filter feeders: Broad beaks with strainers built into the upper and side parts of the bill. Ex: Ducks and Flamingoes
DIGESTIVE and URINARY SYSTEM-Complete Digestive system staring with a
mouth and ending with an anus.-Much like that of a reptile’s digestive system
-Pathway of food 1. Mouth2. Esophagus 3. Crop - enlarged area of the esophagus, where
food can be stored and moistened before it enters the stomach. (Also seen in Earthworms)
4. Gizzard - specialized muscular part of the stomach that often contains bits of gravel swallowed by birds. Muscular walls grind the gravel and food together, thus crushing food particles and making them easier to digest.
5. Intestines – nutrients are further broken down (with bile from liver and digestive enzymes from pancreas) and absorbed into bloodstream.
6. Cloaca – collects and mixes feces and urine forming a white paste called bird droppings for excretion.
7. Anus
-Food passes quickly through the digestive system. Food can be eaten, digested and excreted 45 minutes later.
-Main organ for filtering nitrogenous wastes from blood is the kidney.
-Urine flows from the kidney to the cloaca through the ureters.
-Most water is reabsorbed in the cloaca, leaving the uric acid in crystals in a white paste like form.
-Some birds that live near salt water have salt glands that are near their eyes.
-Salt glands work as an extra pair of kidneys to rid the body of excess salt.
RESPIRATORY SYSTEM-Respiration System is extremely efficient at
taking in oxygen.-High metabolic rate demands for efficient
gas exchange.-When a bird inhales, air passes through the
nostrils to the trachea to 2 bronchi, then to either the lungs where gas exchange occurs or to 9 air sacs.
-Birds respiratory system is modified with air sacs which fills a large portion of the birds chest cavity and where 75% of the inhaled air travels.
-When a bird exhales the air moves from the air sacs to the lung, thus a bird can remove oxygen when it inhales and when it exhales having a constant supply of oxygen.
-Air sacs make gas exchange very efficient during high altitude flights where the air is thin.
-Air sacs also make the bird body more buoyant allowing the bird to fly easier.
CIRCULATORY SYSTEM-four-chambered heart.-two separate circulatory loops:1. Pulmonary loop - Blood pumped from
heart to lungs to get oxygen.2. Systemic loop - Blood that is oxygenated
and is pumped from heart to body
-Half of the heart (right Atrium and Ventricle) receives the oxygen-poor blood from the body and pumps this blood to the lungs.
-The other half (Left Atrium and Ventricles) receives the oxygen-rich blood from lungs and pumps it to the rest of the body.
-Blood need to move rapidly in a bird thus the heart can beat 150-1000 times per minute.
Ex: Hummingbird – 600 bpm, Chickadee – 1000 bpm, Ostrich – 70 bpm
-Advantages to separate circulatory loops: 1. Oxygenated-blood and deoxygenated blood
cannot mix (therefore, the systemic circuit is always receiving the blood with the highest oxygenated blood.)
2. Respiratory gas exchange is maximized because the blood with the lowest oxygen content and highest carbon dioxide content is sent to the lungs.
3. Separate systemic and pulmonary circuits can operate at different pressures.
SKELETAL SYSTEM-Bones of a bird are hollow allowing for less
weight in flight. -Bones are very strong and strengthen by
struts similar to those found in scaffolding. -Air sacs extend into certain bones making the
bones lighter for flight.-Air sacs also act as air conditioning to rid the
body of extra heat while flying.
-To make the bird lighter, sex organs shrink in size and then will grow larger again when preparing to mate.
-Bird’s have a large sternum to aid in the downward beating of the bird’s wings.
-The sternum is attached to the rib cage and is the attachment point for large chest muscles.
NERVOUS SYSTEM AND SENSE ORGANS-Birds have large brains for a their size-Regions of a bird Brain include: • Cerebrum controls behaviors such as flying, nest
building, care of young, courtship, and mating. • Cerebellum- Coordination and movement• Spinal Cord and Medulla much like that of
reptiles.• Large optic lobes to receive visual input
providing excellent vision.
-Eyes are large and well developed.-Birds can see color.-Ears-Birds have a keen sense of hearing.
Owls use hearing to help them hunt.
REPRODUCTION OF BIRDS-Birds will attract mates in many ways:1. Songbird: Males will sing a particular song to
attract female. It has been researched the hormone testosterone allows male birds to sing while female birds lack the hormone thus do not sing. However, when a female bird is injected with testosterone, they can and will sing mating songs.
2. Nest-builders: Males will build a nest in order to attract females.
3. Colors: The male bird is always the prettier of the two sexes. Ex: Peacocks, Robins, Blue jays, Cardinals
-Fertilization is internal, development is external inside shell covered egg. (The eggs are hard and brittle.)
-(In females most often only one side of the reproduction tract develops which helps to minimize body weight)
-Reproducive tracts open to the cloaca.-Females and males will press their cloaca
together to transfer sperm from male to female.
-Eggs Anatomy • Shell – hard, protects the egg from drying
out. Oxygen and carbon dioxide pass into and out of the egg through the shell and the 4 shell membranes.
• Air Space• Embryo is the organism in the early stages
of its development.
4 membranes:1. Amnion – membrane that encloses the fluid in
which the embryo floats forming embryonic cavity.
2. Yolk Sac – membrane that encloses the yolk, which is food for developing embryo. (Yellow part of egg)
3. Allantois – membrane that stores nitrogen waste produced by the embryo, and serves as a lung by exchanging oxygen and carbon dioxide with the air space and environment.
4. Chorion – membrane that surround the other membranes and helps protect developing embryo.
Albumen found between shell and chorion containing water and protein needed by the embryo. (Also called egg white.)
-Most birds build nests, designed to protect the eggs and the young birds as they develope.
-Parents sit on eggs until they hatch. (Sometimes the male and female take turns sitting on the eggs.)
-Incubation is the warming of an egg to a certain temperature over a period of time while the embryo develops.
-(The length of incubation varies with the species. If short incubation periods the birds are less developed, weak, blind, and have few feathers. If long incubation periods the birds are strong and independent.)
-Small birds incubate 10-20 days. (ex. sparrow, wood thrushes, robins.)
-Large birds incubate 21-28 days. (ex. ducks and geese.)
-The average chicken egg is 20-22 days.-Some birds such as ducks and geese can
walk, swim, and eat for themselves as soon as they are hatched but stay close to parent for protection.
MIGRATION-Many birds fly to warmer locations during
the cold winter months to help them survive. (Cold winter take away the food supply that the birds need to survive.)
-Seasonal movement of animals from one environment to another is called migration.
-The most important reason birds migrate is to follow seasonal food supplies.
-Three ways in which birds navigate during migrations:
a) observe the sun and stars b) have magnetic centers in their brains that
act as a compass to help navigate c) follow coastlines or mountain ranges
BIRDS DIVERSITY-Kingdom Animalia-Phylum Chordata-Subphylum Vertebrata-Class Aves-8600 species of birds (live on land and water;
warm (vulture), and cold climates (penguins)).
-4 groups of birds: 1. Songbirds - adapted by perching on
branches. Ex: Robin, cardinal, sparrow 2. Birds of Prey - are hunting birds with keen
eyesight, and sharp claws called talons. Example: hawks, eagles, and owls.
3. Waterfowl - swim and dive in lakes or ponds. Example: duck, swan
4. Flightless bird - can’t fly and specialized as runners or swimmers. Example: Ostrich, Emu, Penguins
BIRDS OF THE WORLD
21 ORDERS OF BIRDS
1. Rheiformes
• RHEAS• Family: Rheidae• HABITAT: Southern South America • DESCRIPTION: Largest New World bird (up to
25 kg; 1.5 m tall); flightless but strong maneuverable runners; bill flat, wide; wings short; birds of plains and open foothills; 3 toes; soft filmy grayish plumage
• FOOD: omnivorous; • BREEDING: Multiple females incubated by male;
11-18 eggs/female, up to 80/nest; sexual maturity at 2 years
2. Struthionformes
• Family: Struthionidae • 1 Species• HABITAT AND RANGE:Africa• DESCRIPTION: Largest extant bird (up to 150 kg; 2.5
m tall); flightless but fast runners (up to 50 km/hr); remiges and rectrices reduced to ornamental function; feathers sparse on head, neck; thighs bare; bill short, flat; 2 toes; birds of open country;
• FOOD: mostly vegetarian • BREEDING: Male larger (black w/white primaries,
bare skin, bright red or blue-gray in breeding season); eggs of harem incubated by male and "major" female; clutch size ~ 10 eggs/female; ~ 30-40 eggs/nest; sexual maturity at 3-4 years
3. Spheniscoformes
• Penguins are superbly adapted to an aquatic life. Their wings have become flippers; useless for flight in the air, but in the water penguins are astonishingly agile. Within the smooth plumage a layer of air is preserved ensuring buoyancy. This is the reason a chain of air bubbles stretches behind a diving penguin. The air layer also helpt insulate the bird in the icy waters of the Antarctic. The plumage of penguins in tropical and temperate zones is much thinner.
4. Procellariiformes
• Shearwaters, fulmars, gadfly petrels • Family: Procellariidae:66 species • HABITAT AND RANGE:Oceans worldwide • DESCRIPTION: Bill hooked, covered with
plates; nostrils tubular, opening forward; wings long, pointed; tail short; dynamic soarers, with considerable flapping flight in some species
• FOOD: Shallow surface divers, feeding primarily upon invertebrates and small fish
• BREEDING: Most species burrow nesters
5. GAVIIFORMES
• Family: Gaviidae: 5 species • HABITAT AND RANGE: Holarctic; • DESCRIPTION: 53-100 cm; dense
plumage; bill strong, tapered; wings small, pointed; tarsi laterally compressed; first 3 toes webbed; foot-propelled divers; sexes alike;
• FOOD: predominantly fish diet; • BREEDING: 2 dark spotted eggs, both
parents care for young
6. Pelecaniformes
• Family: Sulidae: 9 species (Blue-footed boobie) • HABITAT:Tropical and temperate oceans • DESCRIPTION: Bill, bare facial skin,
unfeathered gular region, and feet often brightly colored; bill stout, conical, with sharp cutting edge; nostrils absent; adults white with black or brown, immatures brown
• FOOD: Feed on fish by plunging from the air, sometimes diving underwater
• BREEDING: Colonial; incubate with vascularized feet; 1-4 egg clutches
7. Ciconiiformes
• Family: Ardeida: 62 species • HABITAT: Shores and marshes worldwide • DESCRIPTION: Loose-textured plumage often
with long filamentous plumes on head or back; bill usually long, pointed; neck long, foled in flight; legs and toes long; middle claw pectinate
• FOOD: Feed by seizing prey (fish, amphibians, small mammals, insects), often while wading
• BREEDING: 4-10 unmarked eggs; usually monogamous; usually biparental care
8. Gruiformes
• Family: Rallidae: 142 species • HABITAT: worldwide; • DESCRIPTION: 10-50 cm; many species
migratory; often barred plumage; bill strong; often with frontal shield; body laterally compressed; wings short, rounded; tail short, soft; legs, toes long (lobed in coots); secretive; some flightless, some terrestrial; often capable of swimming;
• FOOD: Omnivorous; • BREEDING: Sexes similar; 1-14 eggs;
monogamous; biparental care
9. Charodriiformes
• Family: Alcidae: 23 species • HABITAT: Marine environments of palearctic; • DESCRIPTION: 14-36 cm; bill often laterally
compressed and colorful; head large; neck short; body compact; wings small; tail short; legs short, set back; feet webbed; claws strong;
• FOOD: wing-propelled divers who feed primarily on fish;
• BREEDING: mostly colonial breeders; sexes similar; monogamous; biparental care, at least until fledging.
10. Anseriformes
• Family: Anatidae: 147 species • HABITAT: Aquatic habitats • DESCRIPTION: Bill lamellate, broad,
flat, round at the tip in most species • FOOD: Most species feed on vegetable
matter, but some feed on fish and invertebrates
• BREEDING: Species; monogamous; female cares for young in smaller species; both sexes care in larger species; feather-lined nests on ground or in tree-holes
11. Falconiformes
• Family: Accipitridae: 217 species • HABITAT: Worldwide; • DESCRIPTION: 15-100 cm; often with streaked
or barred underparts and tail, and brown or gray above; bill short, strongly hooked; cere and orbital skin bare, brightly colored; neck short; wings large;
• FOOD: legs strong, claws stout, hooked, used to capture mainly vertebrate prey (also carrion, fruits);
• BREEDING: female larger; generally monogamous; 1-5 eggs.
12. Galliformes
• Family: Cracidae: 44 species • HABITAT: Neotropics; • DESCRIPTION: 75-112 cm; plumage often
unpatterned brown or glossy black; bill heavy and like that of chicken; cere, lores, and sometimes throat and wattles bare and colorful; wings short and rounded; tail broad, long, flat; legs strong; feet large with hallux not elevated;
• FOOD: largely arboreal; feed on fruits, leaves; • BREEDING: sexes usually similar, 2-3 white
eggs incubated by female, young fed during 1st half of development.
13. Columbiformes
• Pigeons, doves • Family: Columbidae: 303 species • HABITAT: Worldwide • DESCRIPTION: 17-90 cm; dense
plumage; bill with fleshy cere; head small; flight strong;
• FOOD: diversity of feeding habits; • BREEDING: biparental care with young
fed "pigeon's milk" produced by crop; sexes similar; generally monogamous; usually two eggs in flimsy nest.
14. Psittaciformes
• Family: Psittacidae: 268 species • HABITAT: Pantropical; • DESCRIPTION: 8-100 cm; plumage often
brightly colored (although not necessarily conspicuous against natural backgrounds); bill short, stout, hooked; neck short; wings strong
• FOOD: fruits and seeds; • BREEDING: sexes similar; generally
monogamous; 2-5 eggs, usually in a tree-hollow; biparental care.
15. Cuculiformes
• Family: Cuculidae: 129 species • HABITAT: worldwide • DESCRIPTION: 20-50 cm; tail often barred or
white-tipped, graduated; bill curved, stout; often with bare orbital skin; legs short
• FOOD: Generally insectivorous • BREEDING: Diversity of breeding systems (nest
parasites, cooperative breeders); sexes similar; 2-6 eggs per clutch; non-parasitic species generally have biparental care.
16. Strigiformes
• Family: Strigidae: 135 species • HABITAT: Worldwide • DESCRIPTION: 13-75 cm; earlike tufts in many
spp.; bill short, strong, hooked, with eyes large; head large; neck short; wings broad, rounded; flank feathers elongated; tarsus often completely feathered.
• FOOD: Nocturnal predators locating prey by sound;
• BREEDING: 1-14 eggs, depending on food supply; generally monogamous; biparental care
17. Caprimulgiformes
• Family: Steatornithidae: 1 species • HABITAT: Northern South America and nearby
islands • DESCRIPTION: 45 cm; bill short, wide-gaped,
hooked; prominent rictal bristles; wings long, pointed; tail long, rounded; legs short; toes long, claws sharp, curved;
• FOOD: nocturnal foragers on palm fruit; good senses of olfaction and echo-location;
• BREEDING: colonial cave-nesters; sexes similiar; 2-4 eggs; monogamous; biparental care.
18. Apodiformes
• Family: Hemiprocnidae: 4 species • HABITAT: Southeast Asia; • DESCRIPTION: 16-33 cm; crest and flank patch
of silky feathers; bill small, flat, triangular; gape broad; eyes large; neck short; wings long, pointed; tail long, forked, outer feathers slender; legs short; feet weak; toes long;
• FOOD: aerial insectivores that perch more than swifts;
• BREEDING: single-egg clutch; nest glued to side of branch; males more brightly colored.
19. Coraciiformes
• Family: Alcedinidae: 91 species • HABITAT: Aquatic habitats worldwide; • DESCRIPTION: 10-45 cm; bill massive,
straight, pointed; head large; neck short; body compact; wings short, rounded; legs, toes very short;
• FOOD: hunt for fish, other vertebrates, or invertebrates from perch;
• BREEDING: cavity-nesters; sexes similar or with female more colorful; monogamous; biparental care; 3-7 (1-10) eggs.
20. Piciformes
• Family: Picidae: 204 species • HABITAT: Worldwide • DESCRIPTION: 8.5-58 cm; bill strong,
straight, chisel-like; head large; neck slender, strong; wings strong; rectrices stiff; legs short; feet 3-4 toed;
• FOOD: feed on invertebrates, fruits; • BREEDING: drum with bill; cavity-
nesters; males often with more red in plumage; 2-9 eggs; biparental care
21. PasseriformesSONGBIRDS
• Family: Thamnophilidae: 188 species • HABITAT: Forests of Central and South America • DESCRIPTION: 7-36 cm; sometimes with bare
facial skin around eye; plumage usually brown, or gray and black, white and black; sometimes crested; male usually more boldly marked than female; bill strong; wings short, rounded;
• FOOD: generally insectivorous; some follow ant swarms, but very rarely eat ants;
• BREEDING: monogamous; usually 2 eggs; biparental care