Marine Birds Info Sheet

MARINE BIRDS Name:
Marine birds have become secondarily adapted to the ocean.

• _______________________ feet
• ___________ glands
• Excrete nitrogenous wastes as _______________________ to conserve water
• Feed on fish, shrimp, etc.
Must return to shore to nest
Competition is __________________________ between species because of specific adaptations which enables them to:
1. Feed on __________________________________________
2. Nest in ___________________________________________
3. Remain active at _____________________________________ of the day.
Long Legged Wading Birds

Long legs help bird search shallows for food.
The length of the _____________________________________ determines where and what types of food it is able to consume.
Examples:
Herons, Egrets –________________ at small fish/insects, grasping it into their beaks and swallow it ______________________.
Common Gulf Coast birds: Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Snowy Egret
____________ Egret – Smaller bird, black bill, black legs, yellow feet
____________ Egret – larger bird, yellow bill, black/gray legs and feet
Other waders will _______________________ in the sand or mud to search for worms or insects.
Common Gulf Coast birds: Roseate Spoonbill, White Ibis
Terns and Skimmers

Long, ______________ wings and a ______________ tail enabling them to hover over the water using ______________ eyes to
see small fish swimming in the water.
Common Gulf Coast Skimmer: Black Skimmer
Common Gulf Coast Terns:
Forster’s Tern - red-orange bill, with black tip, _____________ legs
Sandwich Tern - _______________ bill, __________________ legs
Least Tern - very small, ____________________ bill, black head with white forehead, ________________ legs
Caspian and Royal Terns – wintering plumage. Bills look different and the coloration varies on the crown of the head.
GULLS
There are about _______ species of gulls and their survival depends on their LACK of ________________________…they feed
on practically anything along the shore, serving as useful ____________________________.
Incidentally, there is no such thing as a “seagull”. In general, they are all just “______________”.
Common Gulf Coast Gulls:
Laughing gull – ______________ cap, black legs, black beak, very very common
Ring-billed gull – ______________ bill with black “_______________”, yellow legs
Herring gull – white head and chest, yellow-orange bill with ____________________ (in breeding), yellow legs.
Cormorants
Usually seen swimming _________ in the water…when a fish is located, they make repeated surface dives, using their webbed
feet to swim underwater.
You will also see them hanging out their wings. Two reasons have been proposed as to why they do this:
1. ________________________________________ (absorb heat)
2. __________________their wings (their feathers are not ________________________________ like most other birds.)
Pelicans
A large bird with a ___________________ below its bill which it uses to capture fish. They live in large ___________________.
When a pelican locates a fish, it plunges into the water with their bills ___________, bob to the surface with the pouch filled
with a gallon of sea water and fish. By pushing their head against their necks, the bird expels the sea water through
______________________ on their bills.
Common Gulf Coast Pelicans: Brown Pelican and the White Pelican
Note- the brown pelican is coming back from near devastation of their species from the use of _______ in pesticides in the
1960s. The worldwide ban on DDT has allowed them to recover from the brink of extinction.
Shorebirds
These are commonly referred to as “_____________”. These include the many tiny little birds that run around on the beach
with the likes of a wind-up toy. These can often be difficult to identify, as they all share very similar characteristics depending
on the ______________________________.
Common shorebirds found in the Gulf Coast: Plovers, Willets, Sanderling, Ruddy Turnstone
Pelagic Birds
Many sea birds spend almost their entire life at sea – the pelagic birds (pelagic basically means “_____________”).
Pelagic birds return to land only to ___________________.
Not many pelagic birds visit the Gulf of Mexico, but a few stragglers may include Sooty Shearwaters, Aububon’s Shearwater,
and Gannets.
Other pelagic birds not found in the Gulf of Mexico (but they are cool enough to mention) include the Puffins, and Albatrosses.
Penguins
Penguins have many adaptations that allow them to brave the harsh condition of Antarctica – the coldest and windiest place on
earth.
Adaptation #1: Buoyancy
Penguins have fatty deposits and thin light _______________. They also have _________ glands near their tails (to waterproof
their feathers), and many __________________ in the thorax, abdomen, and long bones of their tails and wings.
Adaptation #2 – Heat Loss
Body temp is between 103-106oF – using air trapped under the feathers to _____________ their bodies. They also have
______________________ to keep warm in -80oF.
Adaptation #3 Diving
By exhaling air from their air sacs and lungs, and squeezing air out from under their _________________, they can reduce the
ability to float so they can dive deeper. Their heart rate _________________________ when they dive.
Adaptation #4 Migration
Seasonal migration between feeding and _____________________ grounds. Breeding usually occurs near the ___________
and feeding in the mid latitudes (out at sea).
Adaptation #5 Senses
Sight – excellent _____________________ vision to perceive fish swimming in deep water. A clear third eyelid, called a
_________________________________________, protects the eyes when diving. Hearing – although not particularly vital in
birds, can hear a frequency _________________________ than humans. Taste is the _______________ developed sense – no
teeth and few taste buds – they swallow food quickly without chewing or tasting it.
Penguins don’t just live in Antarctica. There are also penguins in South America, Africa, New Zealand, and Australia.
No penguins live in the _________________________ hemisphere though.
Species of the Antarctic continent include: Emperor, Adelie, Gentoo, & Chinstrap Penguins
Penguins of the sub-Antarctic islands include: King, Royal, Macaroni, Gentoo, and Rockhopper Penguins.
Penguins of South America include: Gentoo, Rockhopper, Magellanic, Macaroni, Humboldt, and Galapagos penguins.
Penguins of New Zealand include: Little, Fiordland, Snares Island, Crested, Rockhopper, and Yellow-eyed Penguins.
The ________________ Penguin lives in Australia.
Africa has ___________________ Penguins.

Marine Birds Info Sheet

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MARINE BIRDS Name:

Marine birds have become secondarily adapted to the ocean.

Long Legged Wading Birds

Terns and Skimmers

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