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Warm-blooded is a term referring to animal species whose bodies maintain a temperature higher than that of their environment. In particular, homeothermic species (including birds and mammals ) maintain a stable body temperature by regulating metabolic processes.
Warm-blooded animals could have gained an advantage by creating an inhospitable environment for many disease-causing organisms, thus reducing the risk of infections. Insulation and Thermoregulation : Homeothermy could have originated as a response to the development of insulating structures like fur, feathers, or other coverings.
Birds of prey specialise in hunting mammals or other birds, while vultures are specialised scavengers. Birds are also preyed upon by a range of mammals including a few avivorous bats. [ 268 ] A wide range of endo- and ectoparasites depend on birds and some parasites that are transmitted from parent to young have co-evolved and show host ...
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (Latin:), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight skeleton.
Some birds, like the ruby-crowned kinglet, use a combination of these tactics. "Crevice-gleaning" is a niche particular to dry and rocky habitats. Gleaning birds are typically small with compact bodies and have small, sharply pointed beaks. Birds often specialize in a particular niche, such as a particular stratum of forest or type of ...
Although the term "bird of prey" could theoretically be taken to include all birds that actively hunt and eat other animals, [4] ornithologists typically use the narrower definition followed in this page, [5] excluding many piscivorous predators such as storks, cranes, herons, gulls, skuas, penguins, and kingfishers, as well as many primarily ...
Accipitriformes is one of three major orders of birds of prey and includes the osprey, hawks, eagles, kites, and vultures. Falcons (Falconiformes) and owls (Strigiformes) are the other two major orders and are listed in other articles.
Prey is typically struck and captured in mid-air; the peregrine falcon strikes its prey with a clenched foot, stunning or killing it with the impact, then turns to catch it in mid-air. [83] If its prey is too heavy to carry, a peregrine will drop it to the ground and eat it there.