Class Aves

Question 1

e.g. cassowaries, emus, ostriches, kiwis, rheas
(22 species)
Ecology: flightless birds, diet variable including carnivores, herbivores, and insectivores
Characteristics: flightless; wings usually reduced; sternum lacking large keel; typically long-necked; legs muscular and adapted for running

Answer 1

Order: Struthioniformes (Paleognathae lineage, ratite lineage)

Question 2

e.g. pheasants, grouse, quail, turkeys
(214 species)
Ecology: generally ground-dwelling, herbivorous or insectivorous, some with sexual dimophism
Characteristics: wings short; bills short and conical; feet adapted for walking and scratching in dirt

Answer 2

Order: Galliformes

Question 3

e.g. ducks, geese, swans
(161 species)
Ecology: mostly aquatic (marine freshwater) and gregarious, feed on a variety of plants and invertebrates; ducks typically sexually dimorphic
Characteristics: Most with short, lammelate (flat) bill; legs short; feet palmate; tail usually short

Answer 3

Order: Anseriformes

Question 4

e.g. perching/song birds
(5681 species)
Ecology: comprises 60% of described bird species, found in a wide variety of habitats and with variable diets and ecologies
Characteristics: morphology highly variable; usually with complex songs and vocalization

Answer 4

Order: Passeriformes

Question 5

e.g. woodpeckers
(410 species)
Ecology: feed primarily on tree burrowing insects with the use of a long sticky tongue
Characteristics: beak long, stout and chisel-shaped for chiseling wood; retrices (tail feathers) stiff for support; zygodactylous feet

Answer 5

Order: Piciformes

Question 6

e.g. hummingbirds, swifts
(422 species)
Ecology: hummingbirds are nectivorous and important pollinators for many plants; swifts are aerial insectivores
Characteristics: legs short; feet very small; wings pointed; bills tubular (hummingbirds) or short and wide (swifts)

Answer 6

Order: Apodiformes

Question 7

e.g. nighthawks, whip-poor-wills
(113 species)
Ecology: crepuscular aerial insectivores
Characteristics: bill short and wide; wide gape surrounded with bristle-like feathers; legs and feet small

Answer 7

Order: Caprimulgiformes

Question 8

e.g. owls
(186 species)
Ecology: primarily nocturnal predators, feathers modified for silent flight
Characteristics: Bill hooked for tearing flesh; feet raptorial; eyes large with binocular vision; distinct facial ruff (disk or facial feathers)

Answer 8

Order: Strigiformes

Question 9

e.g. cuckoos, roadrunners
(143 species)
Ecology: feed mainly on insects and other invertebrates, many species are nest parasites (laying their own eggs in the nests of other species)
Characteristics: tails long; bill curved and slender; zygodactylous feet

Answer 9

Order: Cuculiformes

Question 10

e.g. cranes, rails, coots
(213 species)
Ecology: usually inhabit marshes, usually very secretive being heard more than seen, generally strong flying in open marshes and weak flying in dense marshes
Characteristics: Morphology highly variable; tail short; wings short and rounded

Answer 10

Order: Gruiformes

Question 11

e.g. plovers, sandpipers, gulls, terns
(366 species)
Ecology: primarily aquatic or nearshore, strong fliers, often colonial, feed mainly on fishes or sand-dwelling invertebrates, commonly referred to as shorebirds
Characteristics: Bills adapted for grabbing fish or probing in sand; legs often long; feet palmate or semipalmate; wings pointed

Answer 11

Order: Charadriiformes

Question 12

e.g. doves, pigeons
(310 species)
Ecology: widely distributed and well adapted for exploiting most non-aquatic habitats, a generally homogenous group, mainly herbivorous
Characteristics: neck and legs short; bill short and slender and with constriction

Answer 12

Order: Columbiformes

Question 13

e.g. falcons, caracaras
(60 species)
Ecology: diurnal birds of prey (raptors), females usually larger than males
Characteristics: Bill hooked for tearing flesh; feet raptorial with large talons

Answer 13

Order: Falconiformes

Question 14

e.g. hawks, eagles
(225 species)
Ecology: diurnal birds of prey (raptors), long-lived
Characteristics: raptorial feet, long and broad wings

Answer 14

Order: Accipitriformes

Question 15

e.g. egrets, herons, storks
(120 species)
Ecology: wading birds; mainly piscivorous but also eat frogs and aquatic invertebrates
Characteristics: Bill long and straight; neck and legs long; feet semipalmate in some

Answer 15

Order: Ciconiiformes

Question 16

e.g. pelicans, cormorants
(67 species)
Ecology: aquatic (marine and freshwater), fish and squid diet, often colonial
Characteristics: totipalmate feet; nostrils rudimentary or absent; throat with gular pouch; bill long

Answer 16

Order: Pelecaniformes

Question 17

e.g. albatrosses, shearwaters, petrels
(115 species)
Ecology: marine habitats, primarily fish and squid eaters, may eject foul smelling stomach contents as a defense mechanism
Characteristics: High aspect ratio for soaring across waves; distinctive tubular nose; bill hooked; plumage dense and waterproof; feet palmate

Answer 17

Order: Procellariiformes

Question 18

e.g. grebes
(21 species)
Ecology: aquatic (marine and freshwater) fish and invertebrate diet, nests often floating reed platforms
Characteristics: feet lobate; legs positioned far back on body for strong diving; tail rudimentary; some with spear-shaped bills

Answer 18

Order: Podicepediformes

Question 19

e.g. penguins
(17 species)
Ecology: marine, feed primarily on fish and marine invertebrates
Characteristics: flightless; wings modifed as flippers; feet palmate

Answer 19

Order: Sphenisciformes

Question 20

e.g. loons
(5 species)
Ecology: Aquatic (marine and freshwater) piscivores
Characteristics: feet palmate; legs positioned far back on body for strong

Answer 20

Order: Gaviiformes