A huge number of birds living on our planet decorate human life. It is believed that the diversity of birds reaches 10 thousand different species. However, within any species there are several more subspecies. Birds are found in every corner of the globe, they live in Antarctica, in the Arctic, they are large and small, flying and non-flying, wild and domestic... Today you will find out what birds with a large beak (photos attached) exist on the planet.
Australian Pelican
The Australian pelican belongs to the pelican family, whose habitat is sea and river coasts, swamps and coastal islands throughout Australia.
Answering the question: “Which bird has the largest beak?”, you can say: “The Australian pelican.” This bird is generally considered the largest in Australia. Its wingspan can be from 2.5 to 3.4 meters, and a pelican can weigh 5-6 kg, its beak can grow up to 40-50 cm in length.
It is not by chance that this bird is given such a significant size. The beak with a throat pouch can hold 10-13 liters of water. However, the bird does not use the bag to store food; it acts as a catch net and temporarily holds food. After the prey enters the bag, the bird closes its beak and presses it tightly to its chest, thereby removing the water. Now you can swallow the fish.
Toucan
To the question: “Which bird has the largest beak?”, you can answer this way: “The toucan.” The beak of this bird makes up from 30% to 50% of the entire length of its body. But a clear version of why the toucan needs such a huge beak does not exist to this day. One recent suggestion is that the bird needs its large beak to regulate its body temperature, like an air conditioner. Scientists have noticed that in hot weather the beak heats up and thus takes on body heat, releasing it to the outside.
Stork
Which bird has the largest beak? The stork is also considered to have a large beak. These are large birds with white plumage and black wing tips. Storks have a long beautiful neck and a large red beak, which has a conical shape. Such a device provides the bird with food such as frogs, lizards, snails, moles, mice, and insects. The stork's beak is tweezers, with which he easily pulls a frog out of the swamp and catches a fish. But why the beak of storks is red remains a mystery.
Sword-billed hummingbird
The largest beak, if you consider it in relation to the body, is found in the sword-billed hummingbird. The small bird lives in territories from Bolivia to Venezuela in the high Andes.
The length of the beak is 10.2 cm, which is 4 times longer than the body of the bird without a tail. The female's beak is longer than that of the male. But the bird needs such a device in order to easily get to the nectar of tubular flowers. In a calm state, the bird holds its beak straight up, and in flight the beak takes a horizontal position.
The beak is considered an important feature of a bird, it not only determines its position in the system, but also indicates activity. The beak has a direct connection with the feeding methods and living conditions of the bird. It can even tell you how food is swallowed. Therefore, the very fact of which bird has the largest beak is not important, but what is important is that thanks to its size and its shape, the bird adapts to its habitat and can feed on the food that is abundant in this area.
There are now more than 10,000 species of birds in the world. These are the only feathered animals. Their distinctive features are also the presence of a beak and light, hollow bones. Most birds eat plants, but some species are meat eaters. In winter, some species migrate to regions with warmer climates. All birds are unique and inimitable. They are distinguished by size, shape of beak and legs, plumage, and many birds also have various interesting rituals, for example, during the nesting period. Here are the most unusual birds, among which are the largest and smallest, cutest and strange birds.
The largest birds
Among the birds there are both quite large and very tiny species. Most large birds, unfortunately, mainly belong to the group that are unable to fly. The largest birds are the ostrich, cassowary and condor. This category also includes swans, cranes, bustards, albatrosses, emperor penguins, pelicans, etc.
Ostrich
It is the largest bird in the world and can reach three meters in height. The ostrich is an African bird that cannot fly. The ostrich is also the fastest bipedal creature: it runs at a speed of about 70 km/h. Ostrich eggs are the largest among bird eggs.
Cassowary
Another large bird that lacks the ability to fly is the cassowary. It can be found in the tropical forests of New Guinea and Northeastern Australia. It has a hollow horny crest on its head, possibly used to amplify low-frequency vocal sounds. The cassowary's middle fingers have sharp claws used for defense and attacking enemies.
In addition to being one of the largest flying bird species, the condor also has the largest wingspan of any living bird of prey. It is not very beautiful, but its flight is endowed with unique perfection and grace. Huge wings are ideally adapted for flight; birds can soar over mountain tops for hours, looking out for prey. Such a giant, which feeds on carrion, eats about 1 kg of food per day. Nests are made on rocky areas.
The smallest birds
Birds differ from each other in many respects, including size. The smallest birds are found even among predators. The smallest birds include several species of hummingbirds and wrens, short-billed wrens, etc.
hummingbird bee
Among the 334 species of hummingbirds, several very small birds are known. But the smallest species is the Cuban bee hummingbird. The length of its body does not exceed 6 centimeters, its weight is 2 grams. This is the smallest bird in the world fauna.
Baby Falcon
Little Black-footed Falcon- the smallest bird of prey in the world. Another species of approximately the same size - white-fronted falcon. The length of these gambling hunters is no more than 15 cm, and their weight is 35 g. These birds live in southeast Asia and mainly feed on insects and lizards.
Yellow-headed Kinglet
This is the smallest representative of the avifauna of Europe and Russia, which lives in coniferous forests. The weight of the yellow-headed kinglet does not exceed 8 g, and it is also the smallest bird in the taiga. Even in the most severe frosts, it feeds only on small spiders, insects and clutches of their eggs. In winter, kinglets roam in flocks, often in company with tits. They also fly into cities, but people rarely notice them due to the small size of the birds and the way they stay high in the treetops. The yellow-headed kinglet is one of the national symbols of Luxembourg. Another type of kinglet - red-headed wren also has miniature dimensions: length does not exceed 9 cm, and weight 4-7 g.
The most unusual birds
The bird kingdom is extremely rich, and among all this diversity there are many unique species with unusual appearance, feeding habits, behavior, rituals during the mating season, and also the location of nests.
Little Sultana
Due to the special structure of its legs, this cute bird has unique abilities: if necessary, it can swim well like a duck, and also climb and walk on different branches and stems like a chicken. The Lesser Sultana has medium body sizes: weight about 230 g, height - 36 cm. It mainly searches for food on the ground. A specially adapted beak helps her hunt fish, crabs, shrimp and other aquatic inhabitants.
Red-billed Alcyone
Among the strange birds is the red-billed alcyone. It is marked by a method of incubating eggs that is unusual among birds. The red-billed alcyone builds its nest in a dug hole up to 50 cm long. It mainly feeds on small rodents, snails, frogs, and songbirds.
The uniqueness of the hornbill is its bright, fairly large beak with a growth called a helmet. Some scientists suggest that the helmet plays an important role during sexual selection and also helps amplify the sounds that the Indian hornbill makes.
The bird, unremarkable at first glance, hides an amazingly beautiful crest. Its direct purpose is a demonstration during the mating season. Such a bright crown is also a distinctive sign between females and males. Females have yellow or orange crest feathers, while males have fiery red feathers.
The shoebill is considered an unusual, unique and even wonderful bird. Also one of the largest birds, which is a close relative of the stork, pelican and marabou. On a massive head that looks slightly out of proportion, the shoebill has a huge beak with a hook at the end. Shoebill can rightfully be considered the most unusual bird in the world.
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Unusual plumage, beak malformations, unusual shape and, of course, rare appearance make some bird species very unusual. Some of them also have strange eating, flying and mating habits. Here is a list of the 10 most unusual birds in the world that have a very strange appearance.
So, 10 most unusual birds in the world:
— 10 —
North America's largest land bird has sadly become an endangered species. The total number of known California condors in the world is only 437 individuals. They are found within several regions of the United States, Mexico and Canada. Brown-red eyes, a head without feathers, an ivory beak, and protruding black feathers around the neck give the California condor a very unusual appearance. The neck and head of this bird may turn red depending on the emotional state of the individual.
The California condor has an enormous wingspan, larger than that of any other North American bird. Its length is 3 meters. The bird weighs from 10 to 14 kg, and has a record life expectancy of 60 years. Condors can fly at altitudes of more than 450 meters and soar in air currents for a very long time. They build their nests on high rocks and large trees. The main food product of condors is decomposing animal flesh, for which birds can fly almost 250 km in a day.
— 9 —
As its name suggests, the Sri Lankan frogmouth has a large gaping mouth, a broad head and a curved beak. Because their eyes are forward-facing, they have wide binocular vision. This strange bird species is found mainly in the southwestern part of India and Sri Lanka. Small, about 23 cm long, these unusual birds are known for their loud, laughter-like singing, with which they convey messages to each other.
Male and female frogmouths differ in the color of their feathers, females have red feathers, and males have gray feathers. They fly very poorly. They hunt insects at night and rest on tree branches during the day.
— 8 —
The long earring hanging on the chest and the large crest passing through the beak of males make the Ecuadorian umbrella bird a strange looking bird. The length of the earring is up to 35 cm, it is covered with short feathers and inflates during courtship. Both the crest and wattle of the females of these unusual birds are much shorter than those of the males.
Ecuadorian umbrellabirds live in the rainforests of Colombia and Ecuador. The main food of these birds is insects, lizards, and nuts.
— 7 —
African Marabou
The African marabou stork is considered by many to be the ugliest bird in the world. It has a bald pink head and neck, a large wedge-shaped beak, a long inflating earring hanging below the beak, and a massive, dark-colored body. All this makes him look like a vampire. African marabou are primarily found in dry southern African regions. They grow up to one and a half meters in height and weigh up to 9 kg.
The African marabou is one of the bird species with the largest wingspan, reaching up to 3.7 meters. Like vultures, the main food of these unusual birds is carrion. They sometimes steal carrion from vultures and may also feed on other birds, such as pigeons, pelicans and chickens.
— 6 —
This bird, which has a prehistoric appearance, is mainly found in Sudan and Zambia. The huge beak looks very strange, its length ranges from 19 to 24 cm, and the beak also has sharp edges and a grayish pattern. The English version of the name of this unusual bird literally sounds like “shoe beak.” The shoebill is considered an endangered species, with only 8,000 shoebills remaining on the planet.
The average height of a shoebill is about 1.5 meters, they weigh from 4 to 8 kg. During the breeding season, they make sounds with their beaks to communicate with each other. As a rule, snakes, amphibians, lizards and rats are hunted at night. They can remain calm for a long time, hunting for prey, and suddenly attack the victim, crushing it with a huge beak.
If you are an esthete and love beautiful, rare and colorful things, you will definitely like these birds! Some of these beauties are proud of their colorful feathers, while others will surprise you with their extraordinary size. Perhaps several birds will seem familiar to you, but here you will definitely find completely unique species that not everyone knows about.
25. Royal crowned flyeater
This bird is famous for its bright crest and surprisingly modest size. Male crowned flyeaters boast bright scarlet crowns, while females have yellow combs with black and silver-blue spots. By the way, fly eaters show off their fancy crests not only during the mating season, but also to demonstrate belligerence during skirmishes with competitors.
24. Macau Lyra
Photo: Charlesjsharp
Also known as the Macau indigo, this rather large and almost entirely blue Brazilian parrot lives sometimes even longer than 50 years. Unfortunately, the species is critically endangered, with only approximately 1,300 adult birds left in the world. Habitat destruction, hunting and trade are the main reasons why the Macau blue is now in great danger. It’s good that there are initiative groups that have taken on the mission of saving and increasing the population of this species. Their efforts are already starting to pay off!
23. Indian Hornbill
Photo: Shutterstock
These birds are most often found in Sri Lanka and India. The hornbill is easily identified by its unusual horn, which grows directly from its massive beak. Indians believe that amulets made from the horn of a strange bird bring good luck and can enrich their owner. The population size of this species is still unknown to anyone, but the Indian hornbill may also be on the verge of extinction due to local superstitions and environmental problems.
22. Atlantic dead end
Photo: Shutterstock
Typical inhabitants of ocean coasts, puffins are the only representatives of the auk family living in the Atlantic region. The Atlantic puffin spends most of its life at sea, resting directly on the waves when it is not flying in search of food. In spring and summer, puffins return to land to join the large colony and find a mate. Surprisingly, this bird flies very well - the most active puffins can accelerate to a speed of 88.5 kilometers per hour.
21. Scaly bird of paradise
Photo: Stavenn
Most likely you have never seen or heard of such a bird. The scaly bird of paradise is unusual in that incredibly long feathers grow from its head, resembling either cockroach antennae or horns. When it was first brought to Europe, people even thought that the feathers were not real and that someone had glued them on for fun. During the mating season, scaly birds of paradise make such unusual sounds that someone even compared such singing to a composition of machine noise, a running chainsaw, dubstep and chirping.
20. Curly Arasari
Photo: Shutterstock
Curly-haired arasari are amazingly beautiful and whimsical creatures. In addition, they are the brightest and one of the largest members of the toucan family. Obviously, the bird got its name from the black curly feathers on the top of its head, which seem to be smeared with wax for styling the hair. Incredibly, this exotic bird is not yet on the verge of extinction, although its natural habitat has recently become frequently affected by the spread of mining operations.
19. Bali bird of paradise
Photo: Andrea Lawardi
This bird of paradise lives on the island of New Guinea, and is known for the fact that it is almost never seen by local residents. The thing is that the feathered beauty prefers the most remote and uninhabited corners of the land, where she is not disturbed by careless tourists or poachers. These creatures are incredibly attractive, and they are also distinguished by very strange (sometimes even comical) behavior - for example, they like to hang upside down on branches.
18. Common or blue kingfisher
Photo: Shutterstock
These birds are excellent hunters, and all thanks to their long and sharp beaks. They catch fish directly from the water, take them to their nests, where they beat them unconscious so they can eat them in peace. And they always start from the head of their victim. It is not surprising that bright birds live mainly near waterfalls and ponds, rivers and lakes, and sometimes even in the area of rocky coasts.
17. African crowned crane
Photo: Shutterstock
The African crowned crane is a very graceful bird, easily identified by its gray body and white wings. The plumage of this species is white, brown and gold, and the southern cranes have thin golden feathers on their heads. Crowned cranes love African swamps, savannas, and are often found south of the Sahara.
16. Hoopoe
Photo: Shutterstock
The hoopoe is the national bird of Israel, but it is also found in Africa and Eurasia. The exotic bird is easily identified by its prominent crown of feathers and unusual song.
15. South American night heron
Photo: Francesco Veronesi
This amazing creature does not like strangers at all, so few people have seen South American night herons. The heron representative differs from most of its relatives in having a yellow neck, a black cap and a blue face. South American night herons are not often found in the wild, but they are not yet classified as an endangered species.
14. California Condor
Photo: Shutterstock
If you compare the condor with other exotic birds on this list, it is unlikely to seem so colorful and attractive to you. But it’s not for nothing that this bird made it into our rating, because the Californian condor is an unusually large and powerful creature. The bird lives in North America, and there it is considered the largest of its kind. The vulture has a wingspan of up to 2.8 meters and is unfortunately listed as an endangered species. In the 20th century, the California condor practically disappeared from the face of the Earth, but thanks to the efforts of environmental services, the species still survived. As of 2013, 435 individuals had been recorded worldwide, 237 of which lived in the wild.
13. Peacock
Photo: pixabay
Peacocks are probably one of the most famous birds on our list. As you know, only males of this species can boast of bright plumage, and females look much more modest. But this is not surprising, because it is peahens who choose their mates when it comes to mating season, and these days the males have to work hard to impress their future partners with their lush and colorful tails.
12. Quetzal
Photo: Shutterstock
Quetzals live in the mountains of Central America and are incredibly beautiful creatures. They are easily distinguished by their iridescent green plumage, red breast and unusual double tail, which sometimes reaches almost a full meter in length. The Aztecs and Mayans once considered quetzals to be sacred animals, and they called these birds "the rare pearl birds of the world."
11. Spotted-eared trachyphonus
Photo: Shutterstock
The spotted-eared trachyphonus is one of 42 species of African bearded beetles, and this entire family lives in the Sahara region. Unlike most known birds, which make their nests in trees, spotted-eared trachyphonus nest in vertical underground tunnels ranging from 60 to 90 centimeters in length.
10. Red cardinal
Photo: Shutterstock
These birds do not change their bright red color depending on the time of year, and they do not migrate to warm countries for the winter. Therefore, Americans living in states where there is snow in winter are the real lucky ones, because scarlet feathers on a white background are simply a magnificent sight. Red cardinals are quite common in America, they are not afraid of crowded areas and love seeds, so many lovers of these creatures set up feeders and have no problem watching them feed right in their backyard.
9. Red-bearded bee-eater
Photo: Shutterstock
The red-bearded bee-eater loves bees, but also feeds on other insects, including wasps and hornets. Most often it is found in northeast Asia in the region of Myanmar, Thailand, on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo. These birds are very easy to identify by their bright green plumage, red breast and long curved beak.
8. Golden pheasant
Photo: pixabay
Also known as the Chinese pheasant, the golden pheasant is found primarily in western China, but wild populations are found as far away as the UK and several other countries around the world. Male and female golden pheasants look completely different. Males are extremely colorful - they have fiery plumage, golden backs and crests, wings are decorated with blue or green feathers, the tail is usually very long and striped, and the eyes are bright yellow with very small pupils. Females look completely different - they are gray or brown.
7. Lilac-breasted roller or swallow-tailed roller
Photo: Shutterstock
The Lilac-breasted Roller is the national bird of Kenya and Botswana, and is primarily famous for its incredibly colorful plumage. The rich palette included white, purple, turquoise, blue, green, black and copper. In addition, the swallow-tailed roller is a skilled aeronaut and is capable of a number of impressive feats in flight.
6. Inca tern (Inca tern)
Photo: Shutterstock
As you can see, these Peruvian birds have gorgeous white mustaches! Moreover, we are talking not only about males, but also about females. Of course, these are not the same mustaches that people have, but these feathers look exactly like that. Inca terns live only in the cold waters of the Pacific Humboldt Current, where they create colonies of several thousand individuals.
5. Brilliant painted paint
Photo: Shutterstock
The brilliant fairywren is perhaps the most unusual Australian bird when it comes to breeding. When at rest, both females and males usually look almost the same - their plumage is brown, and both sexes have long blue tails. However, when the period of courtship and mating begins, the males transform and begin to show off their bright blue plumage to attract the attention of beautiful ladies.
4. Multicolored Lorikeet
Photo: Dick Daniels (http://carolinabirds.org/)
Multicolored lorikeets live in the rain forests of Australia and Papua New Guinea. Sometimes these brightly colored parrots are found right in Perth (a large Australian city), which periodically creates problems, since this species of birds behaves quite aggressively in the areas where their nests are located. Moreover, the multicolored lorikeets even disturb other native birds, including Australian ringnecks, by constantly preying on and destroying their nests.
3. Long-tailed Velvet Weaver
Photo: Shutterstock
There are currently 3 isolated populations of long-tailed velvet weavers. One of them is located in Kenya, the second in the area of Angola and Zambia, and the third in southern Africa. The bird got its name due to the fact that during the mating season, male African weavers display an unusually beautiful long black tail (up to 15 centimeters in length) in order to attract females.
2. Horned Hummingbird (Heliactin bilophus)
Photo: Shutterstock
This bird species is most often found in the forests and grasslands of central and western Brazil. The tiny bird grows no more than 9-11 centimeters in length, and is easily recognized by its very variegated plumage - in
Different beaks are needed, different beaks are important! Mother Nature gave someone a small beak, and someone became the owner of the largest beak. Moreover, it is wrong to think that the beak is used by birds only for feeding. He is an indispensable assistant in many areas of bird life. Which ones? Which birds have the most unusual beaks?
Here are some interesting facts about the most “outstanding” beaks and their “carriers”.
cock of the rock
The beak of this bird, which lives in the rocky regions of South America, is quite large, but at the same time inconspicuous. More precisely, he is covered with feathers like a blanket. These feathers are a comb that starts at the back of the head and ends almost at the very tip of the beak.
Why is it needed? After all, it interferes with eating rather than helps. Maybe so, but it is needed for something else - to attract a partner, or rather, a partner. The fact is that the largest and most beautiful crests are on males, while females have more modest ones. When the cock of the rock begins to search for a partner, he begins to fluff his comb and scream loudly. The female chooses the male whose comb seems the cutest to her.
Dead end
Translated from Latin, the name of this bird means “Arctic monk”, from English it means “fat man”, and the name “dead end” has Russian roots. It is associated with the blunt shape of the beak.
Such a large beak serves to attract a partner. Before the courtship period, both males and females have yellow bills, but during courtship they turn red.
You can distinguish a young bird from an adult by its beak: in young birds the beak is long and thin, while in adults it “grows out” in width.
Old puffins develop grooves on their beaks. It seems that old dudes won’t be able to deceive a young partner with their red beak!
Such a voluminous beak greatly helps puffins during fishing. And puffins love fish! They dive under the water and swim quickly in search of “dinner”, setting the direction of movement with their legs and flapping their wings. If a puffin catches fish for itself, then it immediately swallows the prey without rising to the surface, and if it catches fish for its chicks, it holds it in its beak. He can grab several fish at once (up to 20 pieces), pressing them to the top of his beak with his tongue.
The beak also helps the puffin dig deep holes for hatching chicks.
Shoebill
Translated from English, the name of the bird is translated as “shoe beak.” Handsome! Nature clearly deprived the poor bird when she distributed beauty to birds, but maybe she gave the shoebill something in return?
The shoebill has the largest beak of any bird (relative to body size, of course). But is it easy for a shoebill to live with such a record-breaking beak? Not good.
In flight, the shoebill presses its beak to its chest, and during rest too. The fact is that in addition to the beak, the shoebill also has a very large head, which can be understood from the name. The head and beak make up a significant part of the bird's entire body. No neck can withstand such a mass! It should be taken into account that the shoebill is a rather large bird. Its weight can reach 7 kg, its wingspan is 2.5 m, and its height is 1.5 m.
It is clear that with such a body the shoebill cannot boast of dexterity, and it does not need it. He does not run after prey, but waits for it, standing in one place: on the shore or in shallow water. From time to time, he “churns up” the space around him with his beak in order to scare away the “lunch” lurking there, and these are frogs, snakes, fish, mollusks, turtles and even small crocodiles. But sometimes the shoebeak can still make a short run if it sees a “live treat” at a short distance from itself. Shoebill grabs prey in its huge beak - a scoop - and swallows it whole.
The beak has another function, in my opinion, very touching. In hot weather, shoebills place eggs or already hatched chicks in their beaks and bathe them in cool water to save them from overheating.
Dalmatian Pelican
The beak of a male Dalmatian pelican can reach 50 cm (this is with a bird height of 1.8 m and a wingspan of 3.5 m).
In flight, the pelican bends its long neck so that its head and beak lie on its body, protruding only slightly forward. When resting, the bird also rests its head on its back.
A pelican has a skin sac attached to its lower jaw that can hold more than a bucket of water. On the beak, at the tip of the pelican's upper jaw, there is a hook that makes it easier to hold slippery prey in the beak.
Such a beak greatly helps the pelican to fish. To do this, the bird lowers its head into the water like a net, grabs the fish with its beak, with a slight movement turns it so that its head enters its throat and swallows it.
It is clear that when capturing prey, the pelican draws a lot of water into its pouch. To get rid of it, he closes his beak and presses the skin sac to his chest to squeeze out the water from it, leaving only the prey in it.
Pelicans spend most of their time on the water, so their feathers get wet. Here the beak comes to the rescue again. The pelican alternately grabs the feather at the base with its beak and moves it to the edge of the feather, shaking off the water.
The pelican beak-sac has another function, however, this applies to birds living in places with salt water. They collect rainwater in their bags for drinking.
Toucan
When looking at the toucan, it seems that he is wearing a black tuxedo, a white shirt and a huge bright beak that does not fit his body at all. With a body length of 60 cm, the beak reaches 20 cm, and its weight is only 5% of the total weight of the bird.
The toucan's beak is bright yellow, with a longitudinal red stripe at the top, a black spot at the end and jagged edges like a saw. Toucans need them to hold “food”.
The question immediately arises: how can such a bird hold such weight and why? With the weight of the beak, everything is quite simple - it is very light, since it is hollow inside (has a porous structure).
But with size the situation is worse. According to scientists, a smaller beak would be more convenient for “cutting” food, it would be more convenient to fly with it, and it would be easier to get food. And now the toucan has to clean the food, grab it with the tip of its beak, throw it up and, raising its head, grab it in flight and swallow it.
Some experts believe that toucans can use their beaks to get food from hard-to-reach places, for example, from thin branches that would not support the weight of the bird. Also, with this beak, toucans very deftly peel fruits.
Why do you need a brightly colored beak? It's also unclear. It does not scare away predators that feed on toucans, just like their huge beak.
However, the toucan manages to exist perfectly for a huge number of years with such a multi-colored beak, which means that for some reason this is necessary, we just haven’t yet understood why.
Amazing fact: the toucan's beak is riddled with blood vessels, which helps the bird regulate its body temperature.
Helmet-billed kalao
Another name for this bird is “helmeted hornbill.”
On the upper part of the kalao's beak (from the base to the middle of the beak) there is a dense casque. The head with beak and helmet make up more than 10% of the total weight of the bird. They (helmet and beak) are yellow in color, with a reddish tint on the sides.
Why do kalaos need such “decorations”? Hard to say. One thing is certain: male kalaos fight very skillfully with their beaks while hovering in the air. Sometimes they get so carried away that they fall to the ground, but still do not stop the battle.
Red-billed Alcyone
This thirty-centimeter bird with a red beak is a relative of the kingfisher. She is a predator, feeding on insects, snails, frogs, fish and small birds. Such a large beak obviously simplifies the process of getting food.
Flamingo
Flamingo is a large bird with a “humpbacked” beak curved downwards. At the top of the beak there are hairs - filters through which the bird releases water, filtering out food. She takes water into her mouth, closes her beak, passes it through a filter, and swallows the food.
Swordbeak Hummingbird
The sword-beak hummingbird has an 11-centimeter thin beak, curved upward, with a body length of 17 - 20 cm! With its help, the bird extracts nectar from hanging flowers, and also catches insects by opening it wide.
Crossbill
There is a beautiful legend about these birds. When Christ was crucified and was in extreme pain, a bird flew up to him and tried to pull the nails out of his body. But she did not succeed - she only curved her beak and stained her chest with the red blood of Christ.
In crossbills, the upper and lower parts of the beak are crossed with each other. Such a beak helps the bird to climb branches, even upside down. With its beak, the crossbill can deftly peel seeds from cones, tearing off the scales.
