THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF

L IFECYCLE

HABITAT

T REETOP The African pygmy falcon lives in two distinct and widely A female falcon perches separated populations in Africa:at the top of a tall tree. one in the southwestern part of the continent and the other in the northeast. In either part of the continent, the pygmy falcon Unlike other falcons, the inhabits the arid and semiarid eggs of the pygmy falcon savannah and scrubland, which are pure white, consistent features sparse groundcover with many birds that lay and scattered large trees eggs in concealed nests. dotting the landscape. The The pygmy falcons African pygmy falcon typically avoids open forests and forest range is dictated by that of edges.This falcon also frequents the sociable weaver; it even the huge nests of weavers, avoids otherwise suitable especially the sociable weaver, savannah habitat that is Philetairus socius , sharing its devoid of weaver nests. roosting and nesting site. In the Kalahari region of The pygmy falcon occasionally Africa, pygmy falcons occupy shares the nests of the whiteabout one out of every four headed buffalo weaver and sociable weaver colonies. those of the sparrow weaver.

1 Flying...

A female pygmy falcon flies toward a large nest colony of sociable weavers that the falcon exploits for its own use.

The entrance is located at the bottom of the nest colony; the falcon hangs upside down in order to enter the nest chamber.

T ASTY

MEAL

A male African pygmy falcon feasts upon a large lizard in the savannah.

BREEDING

HABITAT

BEHAVIOR

IN

FLIGHT

P LUMAGE

In flight, the male redstart reveals distinctive large orange patches on the wings and tail.

The male is glossy black with a white belly and patches of orange on its wings, sides and tail.

American redstart

Golden-fronted redstart

Setophaga. The painted redstart, Myioborus pictus, is a close relative. Redstarts join other American wood warblers, as well as the ovenbird, waterthrushes and yellowthroats, in the family Parulidae. The family contains about 109 species,including the yellowbreasted chat, Icteria virens, the largest American wood warbler.

ANDEAN CONDOR
The Andean condors huge wing area allows it to soar on air currents, and its dense plumage keeps it warm at high altitudes.

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KEY FEATURES

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LAED SGNID UO R

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GNIDL U A ERUT F

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Y RAGU KNIRD

ANTARCTIC NOMAD An albatross wanders great distances for months.

BEAK TO

BEAK

A chick, almost ready to fledge and begin its long aerial journeys, receives food from one of its parents.

SAME TIME, NEXT YEAR Stable pairs return to the same nest site each year.

FOOD & FEEDING

TOP OF THE BILL

A cut above

Caught in the middle

Uplifting experience

Carried away

When feeding, the skimmer The skimmer chooses its line of When the bill hits a fish, the head If the prey is small enough, the flies low over the still surface, reflexively doubles under and the bill attack at random, relying on the skimmer can jostle it lengthploughing its long lower shut.The tail dips to stop the chance that its path will happensnaps to wise in its bill and toss it down mandible through the water. intercept that of a fish. bird from crashing into the water. its throat while still in flight.

LACKBIRD

Often seen flying fast and low between shrubs, with frequent changes in direction, the blackbird is also capable of high, powerful, direct flight.
B
ILL

Bright orange-yellow in the male, the bill is strong and pointed for probing in the soil and pulling worms from their burrows.

P LUMAGE

The males all-black plumage is at its peak in early autumn, after his summer molt.The glossiness of fresh feathers is gradually lost through wear. The tail is often lowered and fanned during courtship.The bird cocks its tail as it lands on a perch or in warning when alarmed.

E YE - RING

T AIL

The eye-rings are yellow in both sexes, but are more obvious in the male than the female.

F EMALE

F EET

The female is dark brown with a pale throat and mottled breast. Her bill is yellowish-brown.The juvenile is more reddishbrown, with heavier mottling.

Turdus, which includes the American robin, Turdus migratorius. Another relative is the olive thrush, T. olivaceus A white breast crescent distinguishes the ring Turdus ouzel (torquatus) from the blackbird. Although (below), which is a the two species look similar, they differ in habitat preference and character.The ring common sight in ouzel is usually found on high, wild moorland, in contrast to the blackbird, which suburban areas of prefers suburban gardens and woodland. Unlike its often tame relative, southern Africa. the ring ouzel is shy and restless. Slightly smaller and slimmer than the blackbird, the ring ouzel has longer wings to suit its migratory habits. Whereas most blackbirds in Britain reside year-round, the ring ouzel is a summer visitor or passage migrant.

The strong feet have sharp claws that the blackbird uses to rake the ground when searching for prey.

A tiny ball of energy, the blue tit forages restlessly for insects and nuts. Its size enables it to exploit food sources hidden from larger species.

WEIGHT LENGTH WINGSPAN SEXUAL MATURITY BREEDING SEASON NUMBER OF EGGS 61 78"

0.350.45 oz. 4.5"

1 year Aprilu J ne

INCUBATION 612 days PERIOD FLEDGING PERIOD BREEDING INTERVAL TYPICAL DIET LIFESPAN 46 261 days 1 or 2 broods a year Insects, spiders, seeds, nuts and fruit Up to 21 years; usually

 ORDER Passeriformes

A F MILY

Certhiidae

GENUS & SPECIES

Certhia familiaris

Brown Creeper 165

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KCIU Y WA A TEG

C sr a g i e d u f s b o k c l y i N , re p v d w o s y nepo saer fo ht .kc b uO

PE H DNA LUFRE HC

 ORDER Psittaciformes

FAMILY

Cacatuidae

GENUS & SPECIES

Nymphicus hollandicus

CONSERVATION

BREEDING

SPECTACULAR SIGHT

Room for one more

Tight quarters

Feeding time
4

Birds eye view

A common guillemot colony nests on the narrow ledges of a steep cliff face, where the birds will remain close to their eggs.

Guillemot eggs are pear-shaped to prevent rolling. A parent prepares to incubate its egg; it will huddle against the cliff wall.

The parents feed their hungry young chick up to eight meals per day, including fish, such as sand eels, that are high in fat.

About 15 days after hatching, the chick leaps off the edge of the cliff, gliding unsteadily into the ocean to join its waiting parents.

B ILL

The bill is tiny, but has a wide gape for catching flying insects.The wide gape is also used in a threat display.

The large eyes give superb vision when the bird is hunting in the twilight.

P LUMAGE

T HROAT

Both sexes have white wing patches, but only the male (left) has a white band on the tail.The crescent on his throat is also white, whereas the female has a smaller, buff-colored throat.

As it patrols the skies, the nighthawk scoops up insects. When an adult has fledglings to feed, it stores a mass of insects in its throat to take back to the nest.

L EGS

AND FEET

These are short and weak. The nighthawk, in common with all nightjars, has a comblike central claw with which it combs and cleans its bill area after hunting.

Common nighthawk European nightjar

Pennant-winged nightjar

BEHAVIOR

HABITAT

FOOD & FEEDING

BEHAVIOR

BREEDING

CONSERVATION Numbers of the oncee lp ntiful Coopers hawk hae v dwindled sa a resut l of habitat o l sn a de p t s icides, r ap ticur al yl in the eat s ern deciduous o f rest.s Hawsk r a er p otected by e f deral w al in the S .U .

Around the bend

The hawk dashes around the trees at high speeds, twisting and turning along the o f rests edge until it spots a crested ycat fl cher.

Nowhere to hide

On the ground with its victim, the Coopers hawk holds its prey with its e f et before tearing meat off the bird with its strong bill.

CRAB PLOVER
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VITaL sTaTIsTICs W EIgHT L ENgTH S EXUAl

11.5 oz. 1516" Unnw ok yMa and June 1 Unwn ko Unwn ko 1 eary Mainly crabs, molusk, ertsbavin

W ING S
The black flight eathrsf on the short, white wings ear env emor strikng in flight. The crab ervplo flies wlo and fast ervo the coastline.

B REEDINg S EASON NUmbER OF E ggS INCUbATION P ERIOD

F lEDgINg P ERIOD B INTERVAl

The , vy hea esdcompr bil esmblr a black . dager The crab ervplo not yonl crushe crabs with its erfulwpo bil, but also demolish molusk yb yeficntl eakingbr open their shel. The and long legs ervplo walk in in water in The eniljuv loks uchm e lik an adult, althoug its markings ear emor y gra than black.

TYPICAl D IET

but lsoa other crustaen, marine ormsw and other Unwn ko

F EET
parytil bedw help het sand or chsear of toes wade crabs. crab

L IFESPAN

UVENILE

RELATEDSPECIES e barc re v olp si eht ylno rebm fo eht Th ylimaf

CREATURE COMPARISONS
Crab ervplo

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catheryso Australin pied

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E AGLE
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OWL

Vital statistics W EIgHT 49 lbs. L ENgTH W INgSPAN M S EXUAl

22.5' 57' 23 earsy Februay Augst 16, but usaly 2 or 3 3436 ysda 506 ysda 1 eary Mamls omfr smal odentsr

B REEDINg S EASON NUmbER OF E ggS INCUbATION P ERIOD F lEDgINg P ERIOD B REEDINg INTERVAl TYPICAl D IET

to adult s;ehar dsbir pu ot the esiz fo ducks 20 earsy

L IFESPAN
Poerfulw etf ear equipd with long, curedv talons, whic cepir . yeprTo grip struglin yepr , ytighl the wlo elswiv the outer ontfr toe of each otf oundar to asit the ear toe.

F EET

C HICKS
Chicks ear born dervco with soft, dens wndo of a ormunif hitew or y-white amcr . colr The wndo insulate oungy chiks aginst the cold of yearl spring.

RELATED SPECIES

contais nearly al theThe family

Strigdae

CREATURECOMPARISONS The great grya wlo ( wlo rof the tile of the sorwld largest wl.o But their simlarty in esiz is edcptiv the great grya is lighter and not as erful.wpo Its dens plumage, ned orf har s winter s of nor then orest,f acounts orf uchm of its ulk.b The great gr edviw head-on; its weloy esy are set close togehr in a round facil disc. The eagl s wlo orange esy are set in a -shaped fltr facil disc. Strix nebulosa) vies with the eagl
Eagle wlo

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