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* *BIRDS

Marine birds living at the seashore or far out to sea have become secondarily adapted to the ocean. They possess webbed feet and salt glands that empty into their nose, excrete nitrogenous wastes as insoluble uric acid to conserve water, feed on fish, squid garbage carrion etc. and must return to shore to nest.

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*They are plentiful where food is abundant (upwellings, salt marshes etc.) Competition is reduced between species because of specific adaptations enabling them to

·         1.feed on different foods

·         2. nest in different places and

       3.remain active at different times of the day.

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*1. Stilt-legged birds Long legs help bird search shallows for food. Herons and egrets wade salt marsh waters, where sand pipers are found along the beaches. The length of the neck, beak, and legs determines where and what types of food are available.

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*2. Terns and skimmers (Sterna hirundo and Rynchops nigra) Long-pointed wings and a forked tail enabling them to hover over the water using keen eyes with polarizing filters to see small fish swimming in the water.

 

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*3. Gulls ( Larus sp.)There are 43 species of gulls and their survival depends on their lack of specialization...they feed on anything along the shore, serving as useful scavengers.

 

 

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*4. Cormorants (Phalacrocorax) Usually seen swimming low over the water searching for schools of fish...when located, they settle into the water and make repeated surface dives, using their webbed feet to swim underwater. Its long neck and pointed beak help it probe among blades of sea grass and rock crevasses as it chases small fish.

 

 

 

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*5. Brown Pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) A big bird with a large pouch below its bill which it uses to catch fish. They live in large colonies and when fish are located, they plunge into the water with their bills open, bob to the surface with the pouch filled with a gallon of sea water and fish. By pushing their heads against their necks, the bird expels the seawater through grooves on their bills

 

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*6. Frigate Birds (Fregatta) Found throughout the tropics and capable of flying far out to sea, and beautiful soaring flight that can out maneuver almost any bird but it cannot settle on the water. they never swim, float or enter the water and must return to shore at the end of the day to rest.

 

 

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*They dive toward the water plucking flying fish out of the air, and grabbing small fish and squid from the surface while only wetting the tips of their beaks. They also harass other birds into vomiting their catch and feed on this.

 

 

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*7. Pelagic Birds Many seabirds spend almost their entire life beyond sight of the shore and these are pelagic birds. (return only to breed). Included are Puffins and albatrosses, sooty shearwaters (migrate 20,000 miles) and storm petrels and gannets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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*8. Penguins

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*8. Penguins

Adaptations

·         1. Buoyancy Birds contain fatty deposits and thin light bones, possess oil glands near their tails (water proofs feathers) (preen) and presence of many air sacs in the thorax, abdomen and long bones of their legs and wings

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2. Heat Loss Body temp. between 106°F-103°F using air trapped under the feathers to insulate their bodies. Penguins also have blubber under their skin keeping them warm in -80°F .

3. Diving By exhaling air from their air sacs and lungs, squeezing air from under their feathers, they can reduce their ability to float to dive under the surface. Their heart rate slows when they dive.

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*4. Migration seasonal migration between feeding and nesting grounds occurs with breeding usually occurring near the poles and feeding in the mid-latitudes. Young birds inherit detailed genetic instructions that allow them to migrate thousands of miles across the water. The longest, the arctic tern (Sterna paradisaea) nests in the arctic in the summer and flies south for the winter to within sight of the Antarctic ice (20,000 miles).

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*5. Senses Sight...excellent binocular vision to perceive fish swimming in deep water. A nictitating membrane, third eyelid protects eyes when diving. Hearing and smell don't appear to be vital in marine birds, although birds hear higher frequency than humans. Taste is the least underdeveloped sense, and birds have no teeth and few taste buds, swallowing food quickly without chewing or tasting it.

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*Ecological importance

Vital components of marine food web, feeding on and adding to the water droppings to fertilize surface water to stimulate growth of marine plants. Birds are attracted to certain areas and leave guano. Industry.

 

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Which bird has a large pouch on its beak and forces water out after catching a fish?

 Which bird steals food from other birds? 

Which sea birds are used by Asian fishermen to catch fish?  

Which sea bird harasses other sea birds into regurgitating their food in order to eat it?

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*What is the longest migration for birds?

Do birds have fat reserves?

 

 

 

 

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Scientific Classification

A. Class-Aves 

This class includes all birds. All birds have an outer covering of feathers, are endothermic (warm-blooded), have front limbs modified as wings, and lay eggs.

B. Order-Sphenisciformes

This order includes all living and extinct penguins.

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C. Family-Spheniscidae

Spheniscidae includes all penguins, living and extinct, and is the only family classification in the order Sphenisciformes .

D. Genus, species

1 . Most scientists recognize 17 species of penguins :

 

 

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*Emperor Aptenodytes forsteri

King Aptenodytes patagonicus

Adélie Pygoscelis adeliae

Gentoo Pygoscelis papua

Chinstrap Pygoscelis antarctica

Rockhopper Eudyptes chrysocome

Macaroni Eudyptes chrysolophus

Royal Eudyptes schlegeli

Fiordland crested Eudyptes pachyrhynchus

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*Erect-crested Eudyptes sclateri

Snares Island Eudyptes robustus

Yellow-eyed Megadyptes antipodes

Fairy (also known as little blue) Eudyptula minor

Magellanic Spheniscus magellanicus

Humboldt Spheniscus humboldti

African (formerly known as black-footed) Spheniscus demersus

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*Galapagos Spheniscus mendiculus

Some scientists recognize an 18th species: the white-flippered variety of fairy penguin, Eudyptula albosignata.

Fossil record

1 . Scientists recognize 32 species of extinct penguins

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*2. Penguins probably evolved from flying birds more than 40 million years As the ancestors of penguins became adapted to an oceanic environment, structural changes for diving and swimming required the loss of flying adaptations.

All penguin fossil fragments has been limited to the Southern Hemisphere. 

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*Scientists believe that ancient penguins began disappearing about the same time that the number of prehistoric seals and small whales started increasing in the oceans.

The closest living relatives to penguins are in the order Procellariiformes (the albatrosses, shearwaters, and petrels) and the order Gaviiformes (loons and grebes). DNA studies also suggest a relationship with the frigatebirds.

 

 

 

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Habitat

1. Penguins generally live on islands and remote continental regions that are free of land predators, where their inability to fly is not detrimental to their survival.

2. These highly specialized marine birds are adapted to living at sea. Some species spend as much as 75% of their lives at sea.

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*They usually are found near nutrient-rich, cold-water currents that provide an abundant supply of food

Penguin species are found on every continent in the Southern Hemisphere. They are abundant on many temperate and subantarctic islands.

Population

Chinstrap penguins may be the most numerous, at 6.5 million breeding pairs 

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*Physical Characteristics

A. Size

            The emperor penguin is the largest of all living penguins, standing 1.1 m (3.7 ft.) and weighing 27 to 41 kg (60-90 lb.).

            The smallest of the penguins is the fairy penguin, standing just 41 cm (16 in.) and weighing about 1 kg (2.2 lb.).

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*emperor

Aptenodytes forsteri

size: 11 2 cm (44 in.), 27 to 41 kg (60-90 lb.)
distribution: circumpolar on Antarctic continent within limits of pack-ice (Marchant, 1990); one of two species restricted to the Antarctic (the other is the Adelie);

 

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*generally avoid open water beyond limits of floating ice (Marchant, 1990).
population: 135,000 to 175,000 pairs
current status: not globally threatened, stable with some local fluctuations

 

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*fairy
Eudyptula minor

size: 41 cm (16 in.), about 1 kg (2.2 lb.)
The fairy penguin, also known as the little blue, has slate-blue to black feathers and a white chin and chest.

 

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*distribution: southern Australia and New Zealand
population: less than 1 million total birds
current status: not globally threatened

 

 

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B. Body shape 

1 .The penguin body is fusiform and streamlined, adapted for swimming. A penguin has a large head, short neck, and elongated body.

2. The tail is short and wedge-shaped.

3. The legs and webbed feet are set far back on the body, which causes penguins to stand upright when on land.

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*. Coloration

            All adult penguins are countershaded; that is they are dark on their dorsal (back) surfaces and white on their ventral (underside) surfaces.

            Many species have distinct markings and coloration.

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a. The emperor has a black head, chin, and throat with broad yellow ear patches on the sides of the head.

b. The king penguin has a black head, chin, and throat with vivid orange, tear-shaped ear patches. The orange coloration extends to the upper chest.

 

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*king
Aptenodytes patagonicus
 

size: 94 cm (37 in.), 13.5 to 16 kg (30-35 lb.)
distribution: subantarctic islands and peninsulas (Marchant, 1990);

 

 

 

 

 

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*usually forage in ice-free waters (Marchant, 1990); mainly over shelf and slope areas (Stahl, et al., 1990). Most juveniles oceanic; observed several hundred kilometers from nearest colony (Ainley, et al., 1984).
population: more than 1 million pairs
Current status: not globally threatened; stable or increasing

 

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c. The Adélie has a black head. Distinctive white eye rings appear during the breeding season .

 

d. The gentoo has a black head with white eyelids, and a distinct triangular white patch above each eye, usually extending over the head

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*Adélie 
Pygoscelis adeliae

size: 46 to 61 cm (1 8-24 in.), 3.6 to 4.5 kg (8-1 0 lb.)
distribution: circumpolar on Antarctic continent within limits of pack-ice (Marchant, 1990);

 

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*is restricted to the Antarctic (along with emperor penguins).
population: 4,169,390 breeding pairs (del Hoyo, et al., 1992)
current status: not globally threatened; stable or increasing

 

 

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*gentoo 
Pygoscelis papua

size: 61 to 76 cm (24-30 in.), 5.5 to 6.4 kg (12-14 lb.)
distribution: circumpolar in subantarctic and antarctic waters;

 

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*avoid pack ice and continental coasts, except near the Antarctic peninsula; usually remain near breeding islands throughout year (Marchant, 1990)
population: 260,000 to 300,000 pairs
current status: not globally threatened; generally stable

 

 

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*e. The top of a chinstrap's head is black and the face is white, with a stripe of black extending under the chin.

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*chinstrap 
Pygoscelis antarctica

size: 46 to 61 cm (1 8-24 in.), 4 kg (9 lb.)

 

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*distribution: antarctic and subantarctic islands population: 6.5 million pairs
current status: not globally threatened

 

 

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*f. The crested penguins (genus Eudyptes), such as the rockhopper and macaroni, are distinguished by orange or yellow feather crests on the sides of the head, above the eyes.

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*rockhopper
Eudyptes chrysocome


size: 41 to 46 cm (i 6-18 in.), about 2.3 to 2.7 kg (5-6 lb.)

 

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*distribution: subantarctic islands population: 3.5 million pairs
current status: not globally threatened; possibly stable

 

 

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*macaroni 
Eudyptes chrysolophus

size: 51 to 61 cm (20-24 in.), 4.5 kg (1 0 lb.)

 

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*distribution: subantarctic islands in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans
population: 11,654,000 pairs
current status: not globally threatened, generally increasing

 

 

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*royal
Eudyptes schlegeli

size: 66 to 76 cm (26-30 in.), 5.5 kg (1 2 lb.)

 

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*
distribution: Macquarie and Campbell Islands; also around the New Zealand coast
population: 850,000 pairs
current status: not globally threatened; stable

 

 

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*Fiordland crested 
Eudyptes pachyrhynchus

size: 61 cm (24 in.), 2.7 to 3 kg (6-7 lb.)

 

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*distribution: subantarctic islands and New Zealand
population: 5,000 to 1 0,000 pairs
current status: not globally threatened; considered near-threatened, though stable

 

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*erect-crested 
Eudyptes sclateri

size: 63.5 cm (25 in.), 2.7 to 3.5 kg (6-7.7 lb.)

 

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*
distribution: Australia; New Zealand; and Bounty, Campbell, and Auckland Islands
population: more than 200,000 pairs
current status: not globally threatened; generally stable

 

 

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*Snares Island 
Eudyptes robustus


size: 63.5 cm (25 in.), 2.7 to 3 kg (6-7 lb.)

 

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*distribution: restricted to Snares Island, south of New Zealand
population: 33,000 pairs
current status: not globally threatened; presently stable

 

 

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*The yellow-eyed penguin, as its name suggests, has yellow eyes and a stripe of pale yellow feathers extending over its dark head.

 

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*yellow-eyed
Megadyptes antipodes

size: 76 cm (30 in.), 6 kg (1 3 lb.)

 

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*distribution: southeast New Zealand
population: 1,540 to 1,855 pairs
current status: vulnerable (IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals); population has decreased 40% in last 40 years

 

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*Temperate penguins (genus Spheniscus), such as the Humboldt and Magellanic, have unfeathered fleshy areas on the face and one or two distinct black stripes across the chest.

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*Magellanic
Spheniscus magellanicus

size: 61 to 71 cm (24-28 in.), 5 kg (11 lb.)

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*distribution: Falkland Islands and along the coast of Chile and Argentina
population: 4.5 to 10 million birds
current status: not globally threatened

 

 

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*Humboldt
Spheniscus humboldti

 size: 56 to 66 cm (22-26 in.), 4 kg (9 lb.)



 

 

 

 

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*distribution: islands off the west coast of South America and along the coast of Peru and Chile population: 20,000 total birds
current status: insufficiently known (IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals), CITES I

 

 

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*African
Spheniscus demersus


size: 61 to 71 cm (24-28 in.), 3 kg (7 lb.)

 

 

 

 

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* distribution: South African waters population: 50,000 to 171,000 pairs
current status: insufficiently known (IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals), CITES II; general decline continues

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*Galapagos
Spheniscus mendiculus
 


size: 53 cm (21 in.), 2.5 kg (5-6 lb.)

 

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*distribution: Galapagos Islands, off the coast of Ecuador, almost astride the equator; is the most northerly penguin species
population: 6,000 to 15,000 total birds
current status: endangered (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Endangered Species List)

 

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* Flippers

Wings are modified into paddlelike flippers. The bones are much flattened and, broadened, with the joint of elbow and wrist almost fused. This forms a rigid, tapered, and flat flipper for swimming.  Each flipper is covered with short, scale-like feathers. The long wing feathers typical of most birds would be too flexible for swimming through water.

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*Head

1 . Different species of penguins can be identified by their head and facial markings.

 2. Penguins have a variety of bill shapes which are used to capture fish, squid, and crustaceans. Generally, the bill tends to be long and thin in species that are primarily fish eaters, but shorter and stouter in those that mainly feed on krill.

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*Shiny, waterproof feathers overlap to cover a penguin's skin.

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*Feathers

1. Shiny feathers uniformly overlap to cover a penguin's skin (del Hoyo, et al., 1992). Feathers are highly specialized-short, broad, and closely spaced, helping to keep water away from the skin. Tufts of down on the feather shafts contribute to the insulative properties of the feathers

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*2. Penguins have more feathers than most other birds, with about 70 feathers per square inch.

3. Most penguin species go through one complete molt (shed their feathers) each year, usually after the breeding season. The exception is the Galapagos penguin, which usually goes through two molts annually.

 

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*During the molt, feathers lose some of their insulating and waterproofing capabilities, and penguins stay out of the water until their plumage is restored to optimum condition

Depending on the species, the average length of the molt varies from 13 days for the Galapagos penguin to 34 for the emperor penguin

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* Generally, penguins are not sexually dimorphic; males and females look alike. Crested penguins are exceptions: the males are more robust and have larger bills

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