The World of Birds

Creatures of the Air

Look up into the sky on a bright morning and you may see them gliding, flapping or darting between the trees. Birds are some of the most amazing animals on our planet, and they live almost everywhere — in forests and deserts, on icy seas and in the middle of busy cities.

There are around ten thousand different kinds of birds in the world. They come in every colour you can imagine, from the dull brown of a sparrow to the dazzling blue of a kingfisher. Some are smaller than your thumb, while others are taller than a grown-up.

Scientists who study birds are called ornithologists. In this book we will find out what makes a bird special, how birds fly, why they have such different beaks, and meet some of the most amazing birds of all. Let's spread our wings and begin.

What Makes a Bird?

How can you tell a bird from any other animal? There is one easy answer: feathers. Birds are the only animals in the whole world that have feathers. Bats can fly, but they have fur. Turtles have beaks, but they have scales. Only birds have feathers.

Birds share some other features too. Every bird has wings, even the ones that cannot fly. Every bird has a beak instead of teeth. And every bird hatches from an egg with a hard shell.

Birds are also warm-blooded, which means their bodies stay warm even when the weather is cold. They breathe air with lungs, just as we do. And although they have no teeth, they swallow their food whole or break it up with their strong beaks.

So remember: wings, a beak and eggs are clues, but feathers are the sure sign. If an animal has feathers, it is a bird.

The Magic of Feathers

Feathers do far more than make birds look beautiful. They are one of nature's cleverest inventions.

The long, stiff feathers on a bird's wings and tail are called flight feathers. They push against the air to lift the bird up and steer it through the sky. Closer to the body are soft, fluffy down feathers. These trap warm air against the bird's skin, like a cosy jacket, and keep it warm in the cold.

Feathers can also keep a bird dry. Many water birds, like ducks, spread a special oil over their feathers with their beaks. The oil makes the water roll off, so the bird stays dry even when it swims.

Feathers wear out over time, so birds slowly drop old ones and grow new ones. This is called moulting. Birds spend a lot of time cleaning and tidying their feathers, an activity called preening, to keep them in perfect flying shape.

How Birds Fly

Flying looks easy when a bird does it, but it takes some special body parts to lift off the ground.

The first secret is light bones. Many of a bird's bones are hollow inside, with thin struts to keep them strong. This makes a bird surprisingly light for its size — light enough to leave the ground.

The second secret is strong muscles. A flying bird has powerful chest muscles that pull its wings up and down. These muscles join onto a large chest bone, giving the bird the strength to flap.

The third secret is the shape of the wing. A bird's wing is curved on top and flatter underneath. As the bird moves forward, air rushes over and under the wing in a way that lifts the bird upward. This upward push is called lift.

Not every bird flies the same way. A tiny hummingbird beats its wings so fast they become a blur and it can even hover in one spot. A huge eagle holds its wings out wide and glides on warm rising air without flapping at all.

A Beak for Every Meal

A bird's beak is its most important tool, and you can often guess what a bird eats just by looking at its beak.

A bird that eats seeds, like a finch, has a short, thick, strong beak for cracking hard shells. A bird that eats insects often has a thin, pointed beak for picking grubs out of bark. An eagle or hawk has a sharp, hooked beak for tearing meat.

Some beaks are very special indeed. The hummingbird has a long, thin beak to reach deep inside flowers and sip the sweet nectar. The pelican has a huge beak with a stretchy pouch underneath, which it uses like a net to scoop up fish. The flamingo holds its beak upside down in the water and filters out tiny creatures to eat.

So next time you see a bird, look closely at its beak. It will give you a clue about what that bird likes to eat.

Eggs and Nests

All birds begin life inside an egg. The hard shell protects the baby bird as it grows, while the yolk inside gives it food. The mother and father bird keep the eggs warm by sitting on them, which is called incubating.

Most birds build a nest to keep their eggs safe. Nests come in many shapes. Some are simple cups of twigs and grass in a tree. The weaver bird ties grass into a hanging basket with a clever knot. The swallow builds a cup of mud stuck to a wall. A few birds, like some owls, do not build nests at all and use holes in trees instead.

When a baby bird is ready, it cracks the shell open with a tiny bump on its beak called an egg tooth, and hatches. Many baby birds are born helpless, with no feathers and closed eyes, so their parents must feed them until they grow strong enough to fly.

Amazing Record-Breakers

The bird world is full of record-breakers. Let's meet a few.

The ostrich is the largest bird alive. It is taller than a grown-up and cannot fly, but it can run faster than a horse on its long, strong legs. It also lays the biggest eggs of any bird.

The bee hummingbird is the smallest bird of all. It is about the size of a bee, and its tiny heart beats hundreds of times every minute.

The wandering albatross has the longest wings, stretching wider than a car. It uses them to glide over the ocean for hours without flapping. The peregrine falcon is the fastest animal on Earth when it dives, falling faster than a racing car as it swoops to catch its prey.

Songs and Travels

Birds are famous for their songs. A bird sings to tell other birds, "This is my home," or to call to a mate. Each kind of bird has its own special song, and some birds, like the nightingale, sing beautifully even in the dark.

Many birds also make long journeys called migration. When winter comes and food becomes hard to find, they fly to warmer places where there is more to eat, then return when the weather warms again. The Arctic tern is the champion traveller, flying from one end of the Earth to the other and back every year — the longest journey of any animal.

Why Birds Matter

Birds are not only beautiful to watch; they do important jobs in nature. Many birds eat insects that would otherwise damage crops. Others spread seeds far and wide when they eat fruit, helping new plants grow. Some birds, like hummingbirds, even pollinate flowers as they sip nectar.

Sadly, many birds are in danger because their homes are being lost and the world is changing. We can help by planting trees and bushes, putting out food and water in winter, and keeping wild places clean and safe.

What We Learned

What a journey through the world of birds! Let's remember what we found.

A bird is the only animal with feathers, and it also has wings, a beak and hatches from an egg. Feathers keep birds warm, dry and able to fly, while hollow bones and strong muscles lift them into the air. We learned that a bird's beak tells us what it eats, that birds lay eggs in clever nests, and that they sing songs and travel huge distances when they migrate.

Next time you hear a bird singing or watch one fly past, remember — you are looking at one of nature's most amazing creatures.

Want to discover more of the living world? Meet the giants of the ocean in Explorers of the Deep Sea, or travel the globe in Amazing Animals of the World.