Understanding the bird’s toe arrangement
Red-tailed Hawk toes up close
Birds are recognized as being the “superb flyers” of the world. Although their wings are what helps them fly . . . . it is their feet and bill that help distinguish what ecological niche that hey live in. By studying their feet we can understand unusual behaviors and where they spend most hours of the day (tree, ground, water). We can look at the birds of prey who have armor protecting it from being bitten and sharp talons for grasping its prey. The grebe toes are lobed which will expand or contract as the bird swims or dives under water. Chickadees will uses its toes for grasp sunflower seed and then peck through the shell to get to the meat of the seed. Although there are many obvious features of the birds feet that helps it survive (as listed above) . . . I plan to discuss the 5 different toe arrangements that our birds have that help make those obvious features work! (more…)
Mon@rch's Nature Blog 