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From Frigatebirds to LBJs...Types of Birds© P.C. Robinson
Like birders, birds come in all shapes and sizes, from as small as the 3-inch ruby-throated hummingbird to the California condor with its impressive 9-foot wingspan. Sandwiched between these are the rest of our 850 species and sub-species. Some are vegetarians, others carnivores. Some nest in woods, fields, and deserts; others prefer seas, lakes, streams and rivers.
Landbirds: A landbird is any bird that makes its home on land. Landbirds include what we think of as “backyard” birds: blackbirds, crows, doves, finches, jays, nuthatches, pigeons, sparrows, starlings, titmice, thrushes, wrens, woodpeckers, Aunt Sadie’s parakeet and Cousin Megan’s cockatiel. Others include flycatchers, grosbeaks, larks, vireos, waxwings, warblers and anything small and of questionable color that you can’t identify, or “LBJs” – Little Brown Jobs (NOT named after Lyndon B. Johnson!). Seabirds: These are birds that prefer the open waters of the seas. Some seabirds, like terns, and gulls, are easy to spot since they hang out close to shore and often follow fishing boats. Others, however, are true, ocean-bound birds or pelagics that spend their lives over open waters and return to land only to nest. Pelicans, petrels, shearwaters and skuas are pelagics, as are auks, jaegers, and the frigatebird (this word may also be used in exasperation when attempting to identify an LBJ). Shorebirds: Birds that live shore-side. They include oystercatchers, plovers, turnstones, and sandpipers. I jokingly call sandpipers the bane of the beginning birder. There are so many types of sandpipers, or “peeps,” that you often can’t tell the difference between them. Like LBJs, “peeps” are a true test of patience for the beginning birder, and are often cause for the creation of new words not appropriate for a family web site. Raptors: Air-borne cheetahs having a preference for small, warm-blooded dinners. These include eagles, falcons, hawks, ospreys, and the “garbage men of the skies” – vultures. They look the way you’d expect birds of prey to look, having no-nonsense hooked bills and talons sharper than Swiss Army knives. Raptors may not hunt your pet cat for dinner, but they are known for picking off hares and snakes in addition to the usual repast of voles and field mice. The menu at your local Chez Raptor also includes small birds and fledglings. Waterfowl: Think of waterfowl as birds that swim for their supper. These include ducks, geese and swans, and duck-type birds such as cormorants, grebes, loons and coots. Go To Page: 1 2
The copyright of the article From Frigatebirds to LBJs...Types of Birds in Birding 101 is owned by P.C. Robinson. Permission to republish From Frigatebirds to LBJs...Types of Birds in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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