Bird Beaks
Purpose
In this activity, you will get a chance to find out how the shape of a bird’s beak helps
decide what it can eat. Pretend you are a bird. You can use only the “beak” you select
(spoon, chopstick, or tweezers) to “eat” the food (glass marbles, pennies, or toothpicks)
provided by your teacher by placing the food into your “stomach” (plastic cup).
Materials








Spoons
Chopsticks
Tweezers
Plastic cups
Glass marbles
Pennies
Toothpicks
Cup
Procedure
1. Select a beak from the objects provided by your teacher.
2. Get one plastic cup. This cup represents your stomach.
3. Hold your beak in one hand and your stomach in the other.
4. When your teacher tells you, use your beak to pick up “food” (glass marbles) and place
them in your stomach.
5. When your teacher says “Stop,” empty your stomach and count the number of items
that were in it. Record this amount on the Bird Beaks Record Sheet.
6. This activity will be repeated for each of the other types of food (pennies and
toothpicks).
7. When done, be sure you have completed the record sheet with your totals.
8. When asked, provide your data to other group members who will record the data on a
group grid. (A copy of this grid is also on your Bird Beaks Record Sheet. You can write
the group totals on this grid if desired.)
9. Using the data that has been recorded on the group grid, create a bar graph that
shows the group totals for each beak and food type. The three different bird beaks
should be on the X-axis and the amount of food collected should be on the Y-axis. There
should be a different color bar for each type of food (see the sample bar graph below).
Name ____________________________________________________________
What Fits Best?
Objective
Students will choose the proper beaks and feet and "build" a bird that is compatible
with a particular habitat.
Work Sheet I
The beaks of birds are adapted to the ways in which birds get their food. The following
are descriptions of different kinds of beaks:
1. Spear Beaks are sharp and long.
2. Predator Beaks are curved, heavy, and powerful.
3. Chisel Beaks are pointed for cutting and boring holes.
4. Scoop Beaks allow a bird to scoop food out of the water.
5. Strainer Beaks enable a bird to hold food while water is strained from it.
6. Cracker Beaks help birds break the hard shells of seeds.
Identify the six bird beaks pictured below. Write your answer on the line underneath
each beak:
1._________________ 2.__________________ 3.__________________
6._________________ 4.__________________ 5.___________________
Write your best answer below each of the following questions:
1. Which beaks are best for spearing and chiseling? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
2. Which beak is best for cracking seeds? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3. Which beak is best for straining? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
4. Which beak is best adapted for tearing meat? Explain
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
5. Which beak is best for holding a large amount of food? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
6. How can a bird's bill or beak tell us about what it eats?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Worksheet II
The feet of birds are adapted to help birds get their food and to allow them to move
around when not in flight.
Following are descriptions of different kinds of bird feet:
1. The feet of swimmers are webbed to help them paddle through the water in their
search of food.
2. The feet of waders help them search for food on the bottom of a marsh or bay while
supporting them and giving them balance. Waders also have long legs.
3. The feet of predators are curved and have sharp talons that allow them to catch and
carry their food.
4. The feet of climbers have toes facing in both directions. The toes are like sharp
claws which help the bird to climb trees in search of food.
5. The feet of perchers enable the bird to grasp a limb or branch. Each foot usually
consists of three toes pointing forward and one pointing backward. This "backward toe"
is as long as the front middle toe.
6. The feet of ground birds and runners help them move through the undergrowth of
the forest. Three toes point forward. The fourth toe is much smaller and points
backward.
Identify the six bird feet pictured below. Write your answer on the line beneath each
pair of feet:
1._________________ 2.____________________ 3._____________________
4.___________________ 5.____________________ 6.____________________
Write your answer below each of the following questions:
1. Which feet are best suited for swimming? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
2. Which feet are best adapted for wading? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3. Why do wading birds have long legs? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
4. Which feet are best for catching and carrying? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
5. Which feet are best adapted to climbing? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
6. Which feet enable a bird to hold onto a branch or limb? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
7. Which feet are best suited to moving on the ground? Explain.
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
8. How can a bird's feet tell us about what the bird eats?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Build-a-Bird
The "Build a Bird" activity will help you see that different beaks and feet allow
different kinds of birds to live in different places.
1. Select the kind of bird you want to make from the types listed below.
2. Next, cut out the bird body form. Then, cut out the head, beak, feet, and tail that
will correctly complete your bird. Once this is done, carefully arrange the bird parts on
your sheet of construction paper and glue them in place. Use colored pencils or crayons
to decorate your bird. Be sure to label your bird using one of the types named below.
Types
1. Marsh or Wading Bird-This bird needs a long neck for fishing, long legs for wading,
and a narrow, pointed bill for spearing its prey (fish, frogs, snakes).
2. Seed-eating Bird-This bird needs a thick, strong bill for cracking seeds, a short
neck, and perching feet.
3. Predator (hunting bird)-This bird needs a curved beak for tearing meat, a short,
muscular neck, and feet with talons for catching and holding prey.
4. Water or Swimming Bird-This bird squeezes water from food it catches. Its wide
bill holds the food while allowing water to drain from it. It has broad, webbed feet that
act like paddles and make it a good swimmer.
5. Insect-eating Bird-This kind of bird has a thin pointed bill, short neck, and broad
tail. Some may have climbing feet (woodpecker), while others will have ground or
runner’s feet (pheasant).
3. Explain why your bird would survive in your chosen habitat.
Chose habitat - _________________________________________________
Explanation
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
Name ____________________________________________________________
Bird Beaks
Evaluate your results and answer the following questions.
1. Which beak collected the most of which food item?
__________________________________________________________________
2. What do you think would happen to your bird if only one food item was available?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
3. Which of the beak types feed most successfully on which food item?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
4. Was one beak type successful with more than one food item?
__________________________________________________________________
5. Did your earlier observations about beak types help you to understand how birds
feed side by side but utilize different food items?
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________
Free Plain Graph Paper from http://incompetech.com/graphpaper/plain/
Bird Beaks Record Sheet
Name:____________________________
Lesson Title: Bird Beaks
Page 1 of 1
Individual Data Grid
Glass Marbles
Pennies
Toothpicks
Total Food
Collected
Type of beak to be
tested:
Group Data Grid
Glass Marbles
Pennies
Toothpicks
Total Food
Collected
Spoon
Chopstick
Tweezer
All rights reserved. Science NetLinks Student Sheets may be reproduced for educational purposes.
Body forms to be used
with all birds.
Heads
Beaks
Feet
Tails
Shape
Type
Adaptation
Cracker
Seedeaters like sparrows and
cardinals have short, thick conical
bills for cracking seed.
Shredder
Birds of prey like hawks and owls
have sharp, curved bills for tearing
meat.
Chisel
Woodpeckers have bills that are long
and chisel-like for boring into wood to
eat insects.
Probe
Hummingbird bills are long and
slender for probing flowers for
nectar.
Strainer
Some ducks have long, flat bills that
strain small plants and animals from
the water.
Spear
Birds like herons and kingfishers have
spear-like bills adapted for fishing.
Tweezers
Insect eaters like warblers have thin,
pointed bills.
Swiss Army
Knife
Crows have a multi-purpose bill that
allows them to eat fruit, seeds,
insects, fish, and other animals.
Feet carry birds to their food and some help deliver food to the bird. They are designed
for running, perching, grasping, wading, paddling and even more.
To hold onto a twig, a bird needs feet with opposing toes that wrap around the branch.
Why don't perching birds fall off when they sleep? When perching birds sit, their feet
automatically lock on the limb. With feet locked, sleeping birds don't fall. As the bird
stands up its feet release.
Long-legged birds can wade in shallow water to reach prey buried in the mud in
marshes. The Great Blue Heron's long toes give support for walking on mucky stream
and lake bottoms.
Birds with webbed feet can paddle through the water and walk on mud. As a duck
pushes its feet back, the web spreads out to provide more surface to thrust the
water. Then, as the duck draws its foot forward and brings the toes together, the
web folds up so there is less resistance to the water.
In open grasslands, most species walk or hop on the ground to find food.
Parrots use their feet to handle food just like we use our hands. Their nimble toes
hold the food and bring it to the beak.
Hawks and owls capture, kill, and carry prey with their feet.
Chickens use their strong feet to scratch the dirt and leaf litter to uncover seeds
and insects.
Strong-legged flightless birds, like the cassowary, protect themselves by kicking
with their powerful feet and sharp claws.
Jacanas walk on floating plants without sinking because they have extremely long
toes that spread the body weight over a wide area, just like using snowshoes on
powdery snow.