Erika Zambello - Backyard Birding for Kids: An Introduction to Ornithology

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Thank you to my parents, who instilled in me a love of nature, and to my husband, who is always up for a new adventure. DEDICATION To Noah, my new favorite adventure partner. Disclaimer Kids should always be accompanied by an adult when outdoors, and it's your responsibility to recognize, and avoid, the potentially dangerous bugs, insects, plants, or animals in your area. Always be aware of the weather and your environmental surroundings, and stay off private property. Edited by Brett Ortler Cover and book design by Jonathan Norberg Proofread by Emily Beaumont Front cover: Black-Photogaphy/Shutterstock: girl; JGA/Shutterstock: birdhouse; Klahan/ Shutterstock: nest; and Takahashi Photography/Shutterstock: hummingbird. Back cover: JanyaSk/Shutterstock: grass; little birdie/Shutterstock: feather; mlorenz/ Shutterstock: owl; Mystic Stock Photography/Shutterstock: western tanager.

All photos copyright by their prospective photographers: Sean Murphy: . Images used under license from Shutterstock.com: A Zargar: (bottom). Carolina Parakeet, John J. Audubon (public domain) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carolina_parakeet#/
media/File:AudubonCarolinaParakeet2.jpg Martha, Smithsonian Institution (public domain) https://www.si.edu/object/passenger-pigeon
-martha-division-birds-exhibit-natural-history
building:siris_arc_402404 Ivory-billed Woodpecker, John J. Audubon (public domain) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivory-billed_woodpecker#/
media/File:Campephilus_principalisAWP066AA2.jpg Great Auk, Jonn J. Audubon (public domain) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_auk#/
media/File:Keulemans-GreatAuk.jpg Eskimo Curlew, Archibald Thorburn (public domain) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eskimo_curlew#/
media/File:Numenius_borealis.jpg 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Backyard Birding for Kids Copyright 2022 by Erika Zambello Published by Adventure Publications, an imprint of AdventureKEEN 310 Garfield Street South Cambridge, Minnesota 55008 (800) 678-7006 www.adventurepublications.net All rights reserved Printed in China ISBN 978-1-64755-223-7 (pbk.); ISBN 978-1-64755-224-4 (ebook) My Spark Bird I started birding 10 years ago.

My parents gave me a camera with a great zoom lens, and for the first time I could really see birds up close. One summer day, as I walked down a road in the Maine North Woods, I heard a buzzing call and noticed movement in the leaves overhead. Quickly raising my camera, I zoomed in on a tiny but colorful bird, busy looking for caterpillars on the trees thinnest branches. After snapping a series of photos, I looked more carefully, and I suddenly knew he was the most beautiful bird I had ever seen. Blue on his back and head, the bird had bright white around his eyes and a flame-colored throat. When the bird opened his mouth to sing, his entire throat and the inside of his bill glowed yellow.

I had lived in Maine my whole life up until that point but I had never known that this birda Northern Parulashared the woods with me each summer! The Northern Parula proved to be my spark birdthe birding experience that launched me into the colorful, melodic, exciting world of bird-watching. From then on, I wanted to see birds wherever I explored. I later went back to school to study environmental science, then went on to work for the National Audubon Societya conservation organization dedicated to protecting birds and the places they need the most. What will your spark bird be? Northern Parula Barn Swallow About Birds Go outside. Stop, look, listen. Chances are, you will notice a bird.

From dense cities to open oceans, dry deserts to tall mountains, birds have adapted to live in habitats around the world. What is a bird? Birds are vertebrates (they have bones), but they also have feathers. This makes them unlike all other creatures on Earth. Today, there are more than 10,000 distinct species of birds spread out across the far corners of the globe. Birds share five major traits: 1) They have feathers. 2) Though not all birds fly, they all have wings. 2) Though not all birds fly, they all have wings.

There are five general types of wings: one allows better soaring using thermals, one is better suited for soaring on wind currents, one is used for making quick turns in the air, one is used for flying quickly for a long time, and one is best for hovering. Great Egret 3) They all have beaks, though the beaks vary in size, shape, and color. Beaks are used for eating, cleaning feathers, building nests, and so much more. Atlantic Puffin 4) They have lightweight, hollow bones. Because the bones are hollow, birds can actually use them to help breathe when tiny air sacs in the lungs move into the space in the bones. 5) They lay eggs.

The largest eggs are laid by Ostriches, and the smallest come from the Bee Hummingbird! How Birds Evolved THE BASICS OF EVOLUTION How does evolution work? When babies are born, they may be very similar to all the other babies born to that species, but they also have key differences. Some of these differences will help them survive and have their own babies, who then inherit that special trait. For example, on the Galapagos Islands, certain finches were born with bigger bills that could crush seeds more easily. Over time, the finches with bigger bills had more babies, who in turn had bigger bills, until these finches looked very different from their original ancestor. The birds we know today are direct descendants of the dinosaurs. Around 66 million years ago, something happenedwe are still not sure what, but it may have been a collision with an asteroidthat caused 80% of the species on Earth to go extinct.

Nearly all dinosaurs disappeared, but some survived! When other dinosaurs died out, scientists theorize that some theropod dinosaurswhich had two legssurvived by eating seeds. These dinosaurs were already small, grew feathers, and sported sharp teeth.