martina borg's project
Post on 21-Mar-2016
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Name: Martina Borg
Class: 505
I am going to relate my work done by Charles
Darwin in the voyage of the beagle when he
answered at the Galapagos Islands and
analyses variation in different finches ( birds ). I
am going to do the similar work on Maltese
Migratory Birds.
Loons
Loons are also known as divers.
Loons are a
group of aquatics
birds. All living
species are members of the genus Gavia, family Gaviidae and order Gaviiformes.
The loon, the size of a large duck or
small goose, resembles these birds in shape
when swimming. Males are larger on average, but relative size is only apparent when the
male and female are together.
Loons find their prey by sight. They eat
mainly fish.
There are 5 species worldwide and 1 species
which occur in Malta.
Grebes
Grebes are small to medium-large in size, have
lobed toes, and are excellent swimmers and
divers. However, although they can run for a
short distance, they are prone to falling over,
since they have their feet placed far back on
the body.
There are about 19 species in the world and 3
species which happen to be in Malta.
Flamingos
Flamingos are gregarious wading birds, usually
3 to 5 feet (1.5 m) high, found in both the
Western and Eastern Hemispheres. They are
more numerous in the latter. Flamingos filter-
feed on shellfish and algae. Their oddly-shaped
beaks are specially adapted to separate mud
and silt from the food they consume, and are
uniquely used upside-down. There are about 6
species worldwide and 1 species which occurs
in Malta.
Cuckoos
Order: Cuculiformes.
Family: Cuculidae
The family Cuculidae includes cuckoos, roadrunners and anis.
These birds are of variable size with slender
bodies, long tails and strong legs. Unlike the
cuckoo species of the Old World, North
American cuckoos are not brood parasites.
There are about 141 species worldwide and 2 species which occur in Malta.
Common Cuckoo
Bee-eaters
Order: Coraciiformes.
Family: Meropidae
The bee-eaters are a group of near passerine birds in the family Meropidae. Most
species are found in Africa but others occur in
southern Europe, Madagascar, Australia and
New Guinea. They are characterised by richly
coloured plumage, slender
bodies and usually elongated central tail feathers. All are
colorful and have long
downturned bills and pointed
wings, which give them a
swallow-like appearance when seen from afar. There are about
26 species worldwide and 2
species which occur in Malta.
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater Merops persicus (A) European Bee-eater Merops apiaster
Birds Size
loons 66 to 91 cm
grebes 23.5cm to 71cm
flamingos 1.5m high
cuckoo 15cm to 63cm
Bee-eaters 16cm-18cm
As you can see all migratory birds are in different sizes, the largest being the flamingo
while the smallest bird is the bee-eater.
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
loons grebes flamingos cuckoo bee-eaters
Table 1 - Sizes
Series 1
Birds Colour
Loons Black with white
patches
Grebes Brown with white patches
Flamingos Pink with white
patches
Cuckoo grey
Bee-eaters colourful
The majority of the migratory birds have white
patches such as loons and flamingos. The bee-
eaters are colourful and the cuckoo are dark in
colour.
pie chart
dark colours with white patches
grey
colourful
Birds Size of leg
Loons Small
Grebes Small
Flamingos Long
Cuckoo Medium
Bee-eaters Small
Three migratory birds have small legs which
are the loons, grebes and the bee-eaters. The
cuckoo has medium legs so it could run faster
and the flamingo has long legs.
Sales
small legs
mediumed legs
large legs
Birds Structure of beak
Loons Long, pointed , thin
Grebes Long and pointed ,thin
Flamingos Long and bented
Cuckoo Short
Bee-eaters Long and thin
The bee-eater has a long and thin beak so the
bird will catch more easily his prey.
Sales
long
pointed
short
bented
thin
Birds Type of feathers
Loons Short feathers
Grebes Brown and long
Flamingos Very Long feathers
Cuckoo Short with patterns
Bee-eaters Thick and colourful
The flamingo has long feathers because they
cover the body to make it waterproof and
increase insulation while flying in cold weathers.
type of feathers
Short
long
colourful
Patterned
In this project I did some research about five
migratory birds of Malta. I point out the
different variations in only 5 characteristics.
This small project shows that variations are
important for different lifestyles of these
species. Different variations allow for different
exploitations of different habitats, different
forms of shelter and defense from predators,
different movements and many more. The
better adapted species will be better during
competition for food, shelter, mate, etc and
therefore they will be able to survive more.
There is a total of 384 species, of which 167 are
rare or accidental. Malta has a limited range of
breeding birds with only 21 regular breeders
and about 17 occasional breeders. However, it
lies on a major migration route and many more
species pass through during spring and
autumn.
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