Lab Quiz

Question 1

Gliding wings

Answer 1

High aspect ratio

Narrow, unslotted wings that are elongated proximally
Allows for high lift, yet low maneuverability
Difficult for bird to take off
Good in open habitats where birds can take advantage of dynamic soaring
Example: Albatross

Question 2

Soaring wings

Answer 2

Slotted high lift
Broad, deep cambered (curved) wings
Prominent slotting (spaces between feather tips) on the primaries
Useful for slow, efficient flight, i.e., soaring on thermals
Examples: eagles, vultures

Question 3

Rapid takeoff

Answer 3

Elliptical Wings
Short and broad – have a low aspect ratio
Slotted
Allows for much maneuverability and slow flight
Best utilized in dense habitats like forests
Allows for quick take-offs
Examples: grouse, flycatcher, many songbirds

Question 4

High Speed Wing

Answer 4

Tapered and pointed – lack slotting
Used by migratory birds, especially waterfowl
Energetically expensive – constant flapping is required to stay in flight
Example: falcons, swallows

Question 5

Hovering wing

Answer 5

Moves wings in a figure 8 type pattern to continuously hover – a very mobile shoulder joint allows for this movement
Wings can beat 20-80 times per second
Very energetically expensive
Example: hummingbirds

Question 6

Normal Anisdoactyl Foot

Answer 6

The hallux (hind toe) is behind and the other three toes are in front
Very common foot type!
Use = perching.
**Hallux can be at same level as other toes (incumbent) or raised up on tarsus (elevated)

Question 7

Zygodactyl Foot

Answer 7

Zygodactyl:
The toes are arranged in pairs, the second and third toes in front, the fourth and hallux behind
Use = holding onto trees.
Example: woodpeckers

Question 8

Heterodactyl

Answer 8

Like the zygodactyl foot except the inner toe is reversed (digits 3 and 4 face forward, 1 and 2 facebackward)
Only found in trogons

Question 9

Syndactyl

Answer 9

• The second and third toes (outer and middle) are united for most of their length and have a broad sole in common
  Example: Belted Kingfisher

Question 10

Raptorial Foot

Answer 10

The toes are deeply cleft with large, strong, sharply curved nails (talons)
Use = grabbing prey
Examples: raptor birds (owls, hawks, eagles, etc.)

Question 11

Palmate or webbed foot

Answer 11

The front toes are united
Use = swimming.
Examples: ducks, some waterfowl, gulls

Question 12

Totipalmate or fully webbed foot

Answer 12

all four toes are united by ample webs
Use = swimming
Examples: cormorants, blue-footed booby

Question 13

Semipalmate or half-webbed foot

Answer 13

The anterior toes are joined part way by a small webbing
Use = swimming, surface tension
Example: semipalmated plover

Question 14

Lobate or Lobed foot

Answer 14

a swimming foot with a series of lateral lobes on the toes
Use = swimming, walking in mud
Examples: pied-billed grebe, American coot

Question 15

Tridactyl foot

Answer 15

Some birds are missing their first digit, also called the hallux
Example: northern three-toed woodpecker

Question 16

Didactly foot

Answer 16

Didactyl = “two toed”
It does not have anything to do with the arrangement of the toes
The ostrich is the only bird to have this type of foot

Question 17

Long bill type

Answer 17

the bill is much longer than the head
Example: sword-billed hummingbird
Food = nectar from flowers

Question 18

Short bill type

Answer 18

the bill is much shorter than the head
Example: redpolls
Food = seeds

Question 19

Crossed bill type

Answer 19

the tips of the mandibles cross each other
Example: crossbills
Food = seeds

Question 20

Stout bill type

Answer 20

the bill is high and wide
Example: gray partridge
Food = seeds

Question 21

Hooked bill type

Answer 21

the upper mandible is longer than the lower and its tip is bent over the tip of the lower
Example: hawks
Food = flesh

Question 22

Toothed bill type

Answer 22

the upper mandibular tomium has a “tooth” Example: falcons
Food = flesh

Question 23

Terete bill type

Answer 23

the bill is generally circular either in cross-section, or when viewed anteriorly
Example: hummingbird
Food = nectar from flowers

Question 24

Straight bill type

Answer 24

the line along which the mandibles close is in line with the axis of the head
Example: great blue heron
Food = fish and other animals

Question 25

Compressed bill type

Answer 25

the bill for a good part of its length is higher than wide
Example: puffins
Food = fish

Question 26

Depressed bill type

Answer 26

the bill is wider than high
Example: ducks
Food = variable

Question 27

Swollen bill type

Answer 27

the sides of the mandibles are convex
Example: tanagers
Food = insects

Question 28

Acute bill type

Answer 28

the bill tapers to a sharp point
Example: blue-winged Warbler
Food = insects

Question 29

Recurved bill type

Answer 29

the bill curves upward
Example: American avocet
Food = aquatic inverts

Question 30

Decurved bill type

Answer 30

the bill curves downward
Example: Brown Creeper
Food = insects

Question 31

Bent Bill type

Answer 31

the bill is deflected at an angle (usually deflected downward at the middle)
Example: flamingoes
Food = brine shrimp

Question 32

Gibbous bill type

Answer 32

the bill has a pronounced hump
Example: white-winged scoter
Food = small fish and invertebrates

Question 33

Serrate Bill type

Answer 33

the bill has saw-like tomia
Example: mergansers
Food = fish

Question 34

Chisel-like bill type

Answer 34

the tip of the bill is chisel-shaped to cut holes in tree bark and draw out food
Example: hairy woodpecker
Food = insects

Question 35

Spatulate or spoon-shaped bill type

Answer 35

the bill is much widened, or depressed, towards its tip
Example: Northern Shoveler
Food = plant matter and seeds

Question 36

Notched bill type

Answer 36

the bill has a slight nick in the tomia of one or both mandibles. Most frequently the notch occurs near the tip of the upper mandible
Example: thrushes (like the American robin)
Food = fruit and insects

Question 37

Conical Bill type

Answer 37

the bill has the shape of a cone
Example: white-crowned sparrow
Food = seeds

Question 38

Lamellate bill type

Answer 38

or sieve-billed: the mandibles have just within their tomia a series of transverse tooth-like ridges
Examples: swans, geese, ducks, & flamingoes
Food = variable

Question 39

Angulated commissure bill type

Answer 39

the commissure forms a sharp angle at the point where the tomium proper meets the rictus
Example: Evening Grosbeak
Food = seeds and fruit

Question 40

Gular sac bill type

Answer 40

the chin, gular region, and jugulum are distended
Example: pelicans
Food = fish