Our planet is inhabited by so many birds, whose name sometimes we have not even heard. They are found everywhere: in forests, mountains, steppes, on the coasts of the seas and even in the cold tundra. The diversity of this group of wildlife is so great that, for example, only on the territory of the Russian Federation can you meet representatives of more than 400 species, including not only sedentary, but also migratory birds, photos with the names of which are easy to find in atlases.
Order of Passeriformes
Interestingly, more than 50% of all species of birds belong to the order Passeriformes, the smallest is the kinglet (6 g), and the largest is the raven (1.5 kg). In total, there are four subspecies of these birds: singing, semi-singing, screaming (tyrants) and wide-billed (horned). The habits and colors of birds, including forest ones, are very diverse, with the males singing and looking most spectacularly. They are the first to fly to the place chosen for nesting, and by their singing they indicate the territory and attract females. Some species, such as starlings and jays, are able to copy the voices of different birds and some words of our speech. Distributed everywhere.
Some passerines in the nesting period live in whole flocks, but most of them form pairs. The male chooses the place, and different subspecies prefer for this hollow, tree branches, stones, holes in the ground, rocks, etc. Reproduction occurs in spring or summer, although, for example, crossbill is not afraid of the cold, and if there is enough food (spruce and pine cones ), then it nests even in January.
All passerines breed chicks that are born barely covered with a light fluff, deaf and blind, but grow very quickly. Both the female and the male feed the cubs. On the 10-15th day, accompanied by parents, the babies fly out of the nest; in species nesting in hollows, this occurs a little later - on day 20-25.
The names of birds that belong to the Passeriformes are always well-known: sparrow, tit, oriole, swallow, starling, wagtail, oatmeal, etc. Of the larger ones, one can distinguish crow, jay, cardinal, thrush, and mountain ash.
Birds of parks, gardens, meadows and fields
The birds of the order Passeriformes inhabit gardens and city parks, live in fields and meadows. Forest and desert representatives are usually small in size, belong to the granivorous and insectivorous birds. These are songbirds with short legs that are perfectly adapted to life on trees. In the fields, mixed forests, parkland and gardens, you can often see a titmouse, starling, rook, bullfinch, crow, nightingale, magpie, finch, jackdaw and many other representatives of the detachment. The names of the birds are known to us from early childhood.
Many families perfectly adapted to the conditions of open space, where there are no tall trees. These include the field lark, oatmeal, pheasant, partridge, etc. Patrol open spaces in search of snakes and small rodents, hunter-owls, loonies, steppe eagles.
All open space birds are adapted to their habitat in their own way. Some of them move well on the ground, not only in search of food, but also fleeing enemies, practically without using wings. They lost the ability to fly, but they have strong legs with short toes, which contributes to the fast running and digging of the earth. Chickens (black grouse, pheasant, partridge, guinea fowl, kraks), ostriches, etc. belong to this group of birds.
Day and night "flying" predators are characterized by powerful wings and sharp claws, which helps them to hunt well. This group includes falcons, black kites, hawks, owls, meadow and field moons, etc.
Steppe birds
The Russian steppes stretch all the way from the shores of the Azov and Black Seas to the Urals, and it is quite natural that a great many birds live on such open spaces. Steppe and desert birds, the types and names of which we give below, are forced to be careful. The open space is not too rich in shelters, so sometimes only a quick reaction and flight can save the bird from the enemy.
Since the steppe and desert species move around among grass in search of food, their legs are developed enough for this. In addition to partridges, steppe birds include the bell-crane, avdotka, strept, krepletka, bustard, etc. They skillfully hide in the grass thanks to the “camouflage” color of feathers and easily find food on fertile steppe soils. Plants and insects are the main food, but birds of prey, photos with the names of which can be found in any manual, prey on snakes, frogs and rodents, of which there are a great many, and also do not neglect carrion. Some species of birds arrange their nests right in the ground, and large predators - on rare trees in these places.
Desert birds
There are few birds in the desert because they cannot tolerate thirst. In Russia, the south of the Astrakhan region and the east of Kalmykia belong to the desert zones, which are rich in vegetation and moisture only in the spring. Such birds as desert hens, bustard, warbler, and steppe eagle feel comfortable in rather difficult conditions. Pelicans, mute swans, ducks, white herons can nest on the border zones near water bodies.
It is impossible not to mention the largest flightless bird in the world - the African ostrich, whose weight can reach more than 150 kg. Evolution took care of him, giving him a long neck for a good view of the area and powerful legs for fast running and hitting the enemy during the fight. Ostriches live in numerous families; feed on vegetation, insects, lizards, rodents, but can pick up the remains of a meal of predators. The funny story that ostriches hide their heads in the sand is just a joke, but females hatching chicks literally flatten themselves on the ground at the sight of danger, trying to become invisible. Due to the heat in the summer, desert birds are active at night, and in the winter during the daytime when it is warm.
Forest birds
Forest birds nest on trees and shrubs, as well as in hollows. Woody vegetation serves as not only a refuge for them, but also a place of food production. Therefore, the legs in most species are arranged so that they easily grasp the branches. Common features are long tails and wide, shortened wings, allowing you to quickly take off, slow down and make tricky maneuvers between dense branches. Forest birds include most passerines, woodpeckers, owls and chicken.
In vertically climbing feathered claws, the claws are bent and sharp. Some names of forest birds of this group characterize this method of movement (nuthatch). For support and balance, pikas and woodpeckers use the tail, and tits, finches and some other pichugas, when extracting food, are able to hang from the branches below. Forest predators hunt in flight, or rapidly falling down to prey.
Forest birds of prey
The characteristic features of day and night predators of the forest are a sharp hooked beak and long claws on strong legs. In addition, they have excellent vision and hearing.
Some names of birds of Russia related to forest predators: eagle owl, white owl, owl, beetle, buzzard, goshawk, etc.
Origin of bird names
The names of the birds were not chosen randomly: almost all of them suggest the presence of any features noticed by people. For example, for the voice and manner of singing, the names are given to the cuckoo (ku-ku), chizhu (chi-chi), tit (blue-blue), rook (gra-gra), as well as hoopoe, seagull, lapwing and many other birds.
For the characteristic plumage, the birds of the Urals also received the names: greenfinch, hazel grouse, redstart (jay), and pichugs such as the flycatcher, the honey fly, the honey beetle and the pine nut tell about their eating habits. The wagtail and turtlehead are easy to distinguish by their behavior, but the nesting location of some birds is literally enclosed in their name: the shore swallow digs holes on high banks, and the reed hides in dense lake vegetation.
The bird names for children are easily remembered if they resemble the sounds they make, for example, when walking, like a heron. She slowly walks through the swamp mud, as if she is “drinking”, raising her long legs high, and the village dialect changed the name of the bird from “chapel” to heron. Or if they are associated, for example, with snow, where the origin of the bird’s name bullfinch came from.
But the hunters know why the capercaillie got his name: when he pokes, he is so passionate that he literally stalls and does not hear dangerous noise at all. But when it falls silent, everything turns into attention.
By the time they live, the names are distributed to such birds as finch and zaryanka. Small finches arrive and fly away in the most chilly, coldest months, so they were called that, although they themselves are quite frost-resistant. And the zaryanka, which often settles in gardens closer to people, meets the morning and evening dawn with sonorous singing.
Bullfinch
The Russian origin of the bird’s name is also peculiar to the bullfinch, because it flies to our region for the winter, along with snow, and with the onset of spring flies into dark coniferous forests. The bullfinch is always associated with the New Year, therefore, household items are decorated with the image of a small-bellied small one, Christmas cards and souvenirs are decorated.
Birds are part of the family finch and live in packs, constantly echoing each other with a whistle. It is found even in city parks in winter. Nests with the onset of heat in the alpine and taiga forests of Eurasia, in the Caucasus, in the Carpathians. It feeds on berries, seeds, and tree buds.
Water birds
Waterfowl, photos and names of which are given below, are those birds that are able to stay on the water. They do not include species that only find food in ponds. Due to the special lifestyle, they share common features: membranes between the fingers, dense plumage and secretory coccygeal gland, lubricating feathers.
The name of waterfowl, or rather of orders, is derived from the brightest representative: anseriformes, pelicans, loons, gulls, penguins, etc. The food is fish, mollusks, frogs, algae, which they dive into the water, like cormorants and dives, or dropping only his head, like swans and ducks. Seagulls can fish directly on the fly, immersing only their beak in water.
Waterfowl of Russia
Waterfowl are widespread throughout the Russian Federation, photos and names of most of which are familiar to everyone. Although the majority is migratory: ducks, geese, swans, etc. At the end of summer, active migration of waterfowl to the wintering places begins. By the way, some representatives of this group spend most of the year far into the sea, returning to shore only for nesting and hatching (some ducks). The habitat can rightly be considered Sakhalin, the Kuril Islands, Kamchatka, Crimea and other places with an abundance of water bodies.
Waterfowl Russian birds, the names of which are sea ewes and eiders, live in Yakutia and on the shores of Lake Chukchi. Along the Volga nest: moorhen, red-nosed duck, chomga, gray goose, mute swan, coot.
Red birds
In all the variety of birds, red birds stand out especially, the name of which is very exotic, as is the bright plumage. If our lentils, crossbills and bullfinches are partially painted in this color, then flamingos, tanagra, Virgin cardinal, fiery velvet weaver, ibis are almost entirely red. Most of these birds live in tropical forests, southern America, Hawaii and other islands, in Australia and Africa. They belong to the passerine, weaver, flamingo, stork and other species.
Interesting features of birds
Different species of birds, primarily differ in body size, beak shape, plumage color and habitat. All features are difficult to describe briefly, so we will touch on only a few. It is interesting that the beak of each bird is designed in such a way that it can easily get its own food. As a result of morphological adaptation, a division of birds according to the shape of the beak into 14 groups occurred, among which: omnivores, fishermen, insectivores, water cutters, mowers, eating conifers, nectar or fruit, scavengers, predators and others.
As a result of observations, it was noticed that some species of birds possess remarkable intelligence and ingenuity. So, gulls and crows, finding a clam or nut, lift it into the air, and then throw it on the ground to smash, repeating this manipulation several times. And green herons to attract fish throw bait into the water in the form of a twig or leaf. Parrots, jays and rooks can be trained in human speech, and the woodpecker reel uses a thin stick to pick a crack in the tree bark and extract insects from there.
The role of birds in nature and for humans
The importance of birds in nature cannot be minimized: interacting between themselves and animals, they build complex relationships that contribute to natural selection. Birds help spread seeds, and some species cross-pollinate flowering plants.
Birds of prey maintain the balance of growth of rodents. And thanks to the insectivorous pichugs, eating caterpillars and larvae, many crops are preserved, including agricultural crops, which is very useful for humans. That is why all sorts of measures are being taken to preserve various species of birds, and nature reserves are also being created.