Birds are animals that have an oviparous reproductive system, which means that for the new offspring to be born, it is necessary for the mother, or the father, or both to hatch the eggs in a nest, which has to have certain requirements. special, but if you want to know more about the Types of Birds that exist, we invite you to read this article.
The birds
Birds are also vertebrate animals that have warm blood and are included in the group of tetrapods. They can be found in all kinds of habitats and on all continental lands, even in places as icy as Antarctica. Its essential peculiarity is that it has feathers and that they have the ability to fly, although not all birds can do so, since there are several species that have lost this ability.
In the world of birds, there is an extensive variety when it comes to their morphology, which is the shape of their body, as well as multiple colors and sizes of feathers, types of beaks and ways of feeding.
Bird Characteristics
It has been scientifically proven that birds are the closest descendants of the dinosaurs, which were animals that inhabited our planet approximately 200 million years ago, in the Jurassic period. As we have already said, they are endothermic living beings, that is, they have warm blood, they have feathers that cover their entire body, a horny beak, formed by keratin cells and they do not have teeth.
Their forelimbs or front limbs are adapted to fly and, in the case of non-flying bird species such as ostriches, kiwis or penguins, their hind limbs are adapted to run, walk or swim. Their peculiar anatomical shape, they have several evolutionary adaptations, most of them linked to flight and their particular ways of life.
Birds generally have the following characteristics:
Light skeleton : they have a skeleton with very light and hollow bones, which guarantees lightness during flights.
Developed vision : their orbits, which are the cavities where their eyes are housed, are very large, which allows them to have a very developed vision that covers a very wide range of vision.
Horny beak : birds exhibit a horny beak, which can have multiple variations, depending on the species to which the bird belongs and its type of diet.
Syrinx : They also possess a syrinx, which is a section of their oral apparatus through which they have the ability to emit sounds and to sing.
Crop and gizzard : They have a crop, which is a dilated form of the esophagus, with which they have the ability to store food before it is digested, and on the other hand, they have a gizzard, which is a structure that is part of their stomach and has the function of grinding the food, often using as help some small stones that the bird has swallowed for that purpose.
They do not urinate : because they do not have a urinary bladder, so uric acid, which is the waste product of the birds' kidneys, is excreted along with the other waste in the form of semi-solid feces.
Fused bones : birds exhibit in their skeleton a fusion of the vertebrae, a fusion of hip bones and variations in the sternum and ribs, with the aim of covering their flight muscles.
Four toes : the feet or claws of birds have 4 toes in most species, which can be found in different arrangements, depending on the lifestyle of each type of bird.
Pellets : Many species have the ability to form what is known as pellets, which are small vomited concretions formed from animal remains that could not be digested.
They lay eggs : as we have said before, their form of reproduction is by internal fertilization and they lay dry calcareous eggs that are incubated in their nests, and it has been observed that several species lose their chest feathers during the incubation period in order to provide more heat to their eggs.
They can be born with or without feathers : newly hatched chicks, that is, those that have just emerged from the egg, can be altricial, meaning they don't yet have down to protect them from the cold, and therefore must remain in their nests for much longer, being cared for by their parents. On the other hand, they can be precocial, which is the type of bird that is born already equipped with down to protect its body, which is why they spend less time in the nest.
Accelerated digestion and metabolism : they have a high and accelerated metabolism and digestion, as an adaptive evolution to favor flight activity.
Special breathing : their respiratory system is very peculiar, since they have lungs that have air sacs with which they enjoy a constant flow of air.
Developed nervous system : They have a highly developed nervous system, particularly with regard to the brain, which is also part of the evolutionary adaptations related to flight activities.
Varied diet : Regarding the diet of birds, there is a great variety, depending on the species, but generally speaking, birds can feed on seeds, fruits and flowers, leaves, insects, carrion (animal remains), and nectar. Their diet will depend directly on the lifestyle of the species.
Long migrations : many species of birds that live in a marine habitat, such as the sooty shearwater (Ardenna grisea) have the ability to carry out migrations as long as they are incredible, since they are able to travel more than 900 kilometers a day.
Types of Birds
Throughout the planet there are approximately more than 10.000 species of birds, and most of them have had their division in the Cretaceous period, around 145 million years ago. Today, birds are grouped into two huge lineages or families:
Palaeognathae : This order comprises approximately 50 species scattered throughout the Southern Hemisphere. It includes flightless birds that lack a keel bone in their sternum. They possess a complex bony structure in their upper jaw, known as the paleognathous palate.
It has not been possible to establish scientifically if they have the same origin and within the same group we will find the largest birds sharing order with others of very small size.
Neognathae : comprised of all other species found on every continent. Neognaths are birds that, through adaptive evolution, have fused metacarpal bones, possess a third toe longer than the others, and have up to thirteen vertebrae.
Unlike the birds that are part of the Palaeognathae family, neognaths have jaws with a different structure. In fact, the term Neognathae means new jaws.
In this section of the article, we will proceed to include a sketch where we want to exhibit with much more light the types of birds that exist.
Birds that are part of the family Palaeognathae
When analyzing the family of birds that make up the Palaeognathae group, we can find the following:
- The ostrich (Struthio camelus): It is the largest bird that currently lives and can be found on the planet. It is also the fastest running bird in existence, but has lost the ability to fly. Its habitat is in sub-Saharan Africa.
- the rheas: Like the American Rhea, they are birds similar to ostriches, although much smaller. They have also lost the ability to fly and are also great runners. Its habitat is in South America.
- the tynamids: Like the Tinamus major, it also has its habitat in Central and South America. These are birds that are walkers and are capable of making short flights at times when they feel a threat.
- the cassowaries: like the Casuarius casuarius, it has its habitat in Australia and New Guinea, or like the emu Dromaius novaehollandiae, which has its habitat in Oceania. Both have also lost the ability to fly and are walking or running birds.
- Kiwis: it is a species of bird endemic to New Zealand, like the Apteryx owenii. They are very sized and balloon-shaped birds. Their habits are terrestrial.
Birds that are part of the Neognathae family
The Neognathae are the family of birds that encompass the most varied and massive group of birds currently known, so in this section we are only going to mention those that are their best known or most striking representations. In this family it is possible to find:
- Chickens: like Gallus gallus, which is scattered throughout the planet.
- Pathos: as is the case of Anas sivilatrix, whose habitat is in South America.
- Palomas: as is the case of the Columba livia, which can also be found almost anywhere on the planet, since it can be found in all areas.
- cuckoos: as is the case of the common cuckoo or Cuculus canorus, which are so striking for practicing breeding parasitism, because in this type of bird, the females lay their eggs in the nests that belong to other bird species. Another bird that can be classified in this context is the roadrunner or Geococcyx californianus, which is striking because it has terrestrial feeding habits.
- Cranes: with cases such as the Grus grus, which has a large size and the ability to migrate great distances.
- Gaviotas: as occurs with the Larus occidentalis, which are medium-sized seabirds and have one of the largest wingspans, that is, they have the greatest distance of wings measured from one tip to the other.
- Raptors: as is the case of the golden eagle, Aquila chrysaetos, which is a species of large bird and an excellent flier; or the case of owls and owls, such as the snowy owl or Aquila chrysaetos, whose special characteristic is that they have white plumage, also as an adaptive evolution to blend in with their surroundings and be able to hunt more easily.
- penguins: of all known and whose representatives can reach a length of 1,20 meters in height, as is the case with the emperor penguin or Aptenodytes forsteri.
- herons: as occurs with the Ardea alba, which is widely distributed on the planet and is one of the largest of this group.
- Hummingbirds: with representatives as small as the Mellisuga helenae class, which is considered to be the smallest bird on the planet.
- Kingfisher: of which we can take the Alcedo atthis, which is so striking for its exuberant bright colors and its unbeatable autonomy and ability to fish.
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