Does The Beak Size Of Probosciger Affect Its Foraging Success?

The Grants observed how the two ground finches preformed while attempting to obtain a seed called a Caltrop. Caltrops naturally have spikes around the seed as a defense against intruders. The Magnirostris did not have a hard time cracking open the Caltrop, with its hard, powerful jaw. However the Fortis would have to put more effort into cracking a single seed. The regular Fortis would try for six times and then give up, moving on to another seed. They will often move onto a different seed without trying. However the Fortis with a beak that is slightly deeper beak would attempt to crack the caltrop, and after a few tries, will succeed.

In 1977 a drought reduced the number of small seeds available for the birds, forcing them to rely on larger seeds and nuts, which were difficult for birds with smaller beaks to open. The number of birds unable to eat reduced as they died and gave way to harder beaked finches. Within a couple of generations they had evolved larger beaks. In 2003 another drought struck the Galapagos and as there were many large beaked finches, the food source of nuts dwindled, making the ability to eat smaller seeds an asset. The numbers of larger beaked birds dwindled as food became scarce, leaving the smaller birds to survive and reproduce. Darwin’s theory was not well received when first written in On the Origin of Species, though many scientists today use it as a basis for research in evolution.

Why were some Finches able to survive while other Finches died? On the Galápagos Islands off the coast near Ecuador we studied the behaviors of the animals, plants and environment on Daphne Major we found that the lack of rainfall during the wet season of 1977 caused most of the plants to produce less seeds and thus most of the medium ground finches died of starvation as their main food source had become scarce. Although the lack of seeds some finches were able to survive with their longer and bigger beaks. They were able to survive because their beaks were able to break open the harder and more plentiful Tribulus seeds that survived the dry season of 1977.

Evolutionary adaptation has been widely recognized as shaping life forms into definite, distinguishable groups with significant traits. Some animals have evolved into odd ways, that they could be removed from their parent group. For instance, the vegetarian eagle is related to the Golden Eagle, however its distinctive feature is that it attacks palm trees instead of animals. This eagle has a special adapted digestive system, which separates itself from the rest of the eagles. You may be wondering how it can live without a typical meaty diet that all other eagles experience. This is because the bill of a vegetarian eagle opens nuts, and obtains the fats inside to compensate for a typical meaty diet. This bird is an excellent interpretation of

Precipitation Levels and the Affects to Beak Size Dixie Woodard BIO/101 November 22, 2010 Alison Barrett Precipitation Levels and the Affects to Beak Size The experiment demonstrates the affect of precipitation levels to the beak size of finches on Darwin Island and Wallace Island. The levels of rainfall not only

The researchers presented New Caledonian crows with a bucket filled with some food in an attempt to document how they went about selecting tools. The bucket was placed in a well, and pieces of straight and hooked wire were placed before the birds.

The Puerto Rican parrot or "iguaca" (as our Taino Indians called it) is a bright green bird with a red band on the forehead, a white ring around the eye and the blue primary feathers. Juveniles are quite similar to adults. Both females and males are similar and measure about twelve inches.

Darwin vs. Wallace Islands To compare the impact of evolution on different organisms a study was conducted by: carefully examining the species of birds with each other. This was accomplished through using a sample population of 200 birds. Moreover, there were other factors that were taken into account (in order to ensure objectivity and accuracy). The below table is illustrating those factors that were considered to be the most important during this study. ("Evolution Lab," 2012)

One of its most important characteristics is its beak. The finch adapted to have a thin, long beak to probe through moss, bark and leaves in search of food (Wildscreen Arkive, N.D.). These finches have the thinnest beak out of the 13 finches; which aids them to find small insects. The Green Warbler finch are mostly found in humid highland forest where their primary food source is found. These adaptations made them more fit to survive on available food. Over the years the finch’s beak has evolved as the bird developed different taste for insects. Another famous adaptation is how they camouflage in their environment. The Green Warbler is restricted to the forest and is greener in body colouration, while the Gray Warbler is found in shrubby, dry thickets and is greyer and duller looking (Certhidea olivacea, 2010). Their coloration helps them camouflage in their own environments, and to hide from predators. Recent studies have found that there are in fact two separate species of the Warbler Finch, the Green Warbler Finch and the Grey Warbler Finch, but are considered as a single species (Wildscreen Arkive, N.D.). The Green Warbler finch mainly occupies larger, inner islands, while the Grey Warbler finch inhabits the smaller, outer islands (Green Warbler Finch,

The Australian Ringneck The Australian ringneck's scientific name is Barnardius zonarius. You will only find the Australian ringneck living in Australia. They are found in pairs or small groups in light timbered areas, open woodlands and tree-lined watercourses. They look for most of their food on the ground, but they

F. Divina, "Game Birds and Fowl." In Foods of the Americas, 224. New York: Crown Publishing Group, 2004.

In the Galapagos Islands there is an island named, Daphne Major, this island plays as the host of the Galapagos finches. In 1976 - 1977 there was an absolute near extinction of these finches. This is because of the drought of 1976 and 1977 (see figure 1). While the drought made the Finch population dwindle there was a hidden trait that was helping some survive, and that is beak size. Why did the larger beaks help those fortunate Finches survive? Because the only plants that survived where plants like the Tribulus, which produces hard shelled seeds. While there was an abundance of hard shelled seeds there was a shortage of soft shelled seeds. The finches that had the larger beaks weighed more, for example, survivors weighed approx. 12.5g to 17.5g with beak sizes going from 10.5 to 13.6(for evidence see figure 2. This reduced the population because the Finch’s with the smaller beaks couldn't open the harder seeds and had to scavenge for soft seeds which were very rare. The finches with small beaks, then died from starvation

is a large seabird, has a long gray bill, long pointed tail, and has white feathers all over

Body Features: 1- Lack of nose and teeth: these parts are heavy and too forward.To grind their food, their stomachs have a gizzard near their center of gravity. They use their mouth and the nostrils located on the top of their lightweight beak to breathe.

Observations Of New Zealand Native And Non-Native Birds In Relation To Vegetation Type. Abstract New Zealand’s landscape has changed extensively since the arrival of humans. Now, native and non-native species of both flora and fauna co-exist. People enjoy having wildlife around them and in recent years there has been a great deal of interest in urban wildlife.