Hummingbirds Adaptations

The cardinal is a ground feeder and finds food while hopping through forests and shrubbery. The adults diet consists of insects, spiders, wild fruits, berries, and weed seeds. They feed their young almost exclusively on insects. In the winter, Cardinals eat more seeds and berries since insects are

These birds have astonished scientists with an ability to apply complex social reasoning, incredible feats of memory, and an outstanding aptitude for crafting and using tools.

Hummingbirds can be characterized by their resilience and their ability of determination. Due to the hummingbirds deceiving size, “The female,

Monarchs do not have many predators expect for man. The monarch's trick to not being eating it two hold. First, the coloring of the monarch mimics that of a wasp or a bee which makes predators think twice before trying to eat them. Second, the milkweed plant in which the caterpillar eats has toxins which make the wings of the butterfly distasteful to predators. The monarch butterfly drinks nectar while the caterpillar eats the milkweed. The monarch favorite food here in Florida is Asclepias ssp. or milkweed (Wexler, 1994).

There are 328 hummingbird species. The smallest is the bee hummingbird from Cuba, and the largest is the giant hummingbird from South America. Hummingbird bills come in different sizes and shapes, too. The long, slender bill is adapted to collect nectar from flowers. The bill protects the long, split tongue and allows each hummingbird species to feed on specific

Hummingbirds and children often inspire a sense of happiness, freedom, imagination, and being worry-free. These traits send off a feeling of nostalgia to remind those watching them of their childhood. Though an unusual comparison, author Mary Oliver connects these two together in the poem, “Hummingbirds,” by employing an image of hummingbirds to express a sense of childhood, using a personal experience and in general throughout various literary devices, such as personification, simile, symbolism, amongst others. Oliver expressed a sense of childhood was through an image of hummingbirds. In the text, “The female, and two chicks, each no bigger than my thumb,” (Oliver 1-2) symbolizes a family with a parent and two babies.

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,

Chickadees feed even when its 20 degrees chirping away happily with their “chick-a-dee, chick-a-dee”. Juncos buddy up with them in the cold too. I can’t help but think that if those small birds who don’t weigh much more some cotton balls can survive the winter, I should be able to stand it also. They’re cheerfulness and energy inspire me on days when all else is cold, sleeping and silent.

area, the Wedge-billed hummingbird is at the bottom of the food chain. Most hummingbirds eat

Keeping a hummingbird feeder is a good idea, but there are other things you need to do to keep the little birds happy and humming in your garden. Hummingbirds, unlike most other animals, do not find their food source based on smell. Because of this, brightly colored plants and feeders are what attract the tiny creatures to your garden. Red is the best color to attract them. Keeping a clean, full feeder provides hummingbirds with the energy they need to keep flying around your garden and to other stops on their feeding route. The sugar water solution, however, is not their main food source. Hummingbirds actually get the nutrients and proteins they need for survival from soft-bodied spiders and tiny insects on the plants in your garden. Their outrageous metabolisms burn up calories so quickly, they need the sugar and flower nectars to keep them energized so they can hunt. The traditional sugar/water solution calls for one part sugar to four parts water. Do not boil the water to make syrup. Just mix it in room temperature water. Some gardeners have experimented with solutions that have a higher concentration of sugar to water. There is no research to show that high concentrated solutions of sugar harms the hummingbirds. Their metabolism operates so much differently than most animals. A higher concentration of solution just means they can drink less often to get the energy they need to hunt. It

Bald Eagles migrate every year, before winter and summer. They choose the same exact spots in both places each year.

Mockingbirds like to eat some specific things and can have unique ways they eat them. The mockingbird often seeks insects on open lawns in southern areas (Kaufman). Along with seeking the insects in open lawns they also mostly capture insects by running or walking around on ground (Kaufman). Some characteristics and/or interesting facts of the mockingbird can be tied to where they live or move to.

Birds’ beaks are the tools they have to use to gather food. The best adapted (fittest) to the available food have the best chance of surviving (not starving to death) and of having offspring (Nustem, 2013).

Although the Hummingbird is seen as a charm it seems to mirror her infamously shaped eyebrows.

There are almost as many ways of flying as there are kinds of birds. Albatrosses glide and soar with long narrow wings stretched out, sometimes staying aloft for hours without a single wing beat. Hummingbirds, on the other hand, can 't rest their wings for even a second in flight. Woodpeckers have a swooping flight, crows fly in a straight line, and swallows dart and weave every which way.