Birds Facts for Kids
Feathered facts about birds from around the world
The eclectus parrot has such extreme colour difference between males (green) and females (red and blue) that scientists once thought they were two different species.
Many songbirds have regional dialects — the same species sings noticeably different songs in different geographic areas, passed down through generations.
The bobolink migrates up to 12,500 miles round trip between North America and South America — one of the longest migrations of any songbird.
Wandering albatrosses form lifelong pair bonds and spend years apart at sea before returning to reunite with their partner at the same nesting site.
Fossil pelicans dating back 40 million years are remarkably similar to modern pelicans, showing the group has barely changed in evolutionary terms.
Nightjars rest on the ground or along branches during the day, and their mottled brown plumage makes them virtually indistinguishable from bark and dead leaves.
Female weaver birds inspect nests very carefully and will tear apart a nest that does not meet their standards, forcing the male to rebuild it.
Adult common swifts have such short legs and long wings that if they land on flat ground they can struggle to take off — so they virtually never land.
The whooping crane came close to extinction — by 1941 only 15 birds remained. Decades of conservation have brought the population back to over 800.
The ibisbill is found only along the boulder-strewn rivers of the Himalayas and Central Asian mountains, where its pinkish-red bill probes under rocks for insects.