WetlandCare Australia Sponsors

 

Business Partners

WetlandCare Australia - Teacher Resources

Beaks and Feet

(* based on Catchment Education Resources Book, Dept of Natural Resources – Victoria)

Different features of birds that allow them to live and feed in different parts of the wetlands (*).

Ducks Flat bill for sifting mud and webbed feet for swimming. Duck

Cormorants and Darters Usually found in open water because they catch fish by swimming and diving. Diving cormorant Diving Darter

 

Stilts and Herons Long legs for wading through shallows and long bill for reaching. Diving cormorant Diving Darter

Swamp Hen Wide feet for walking on weeds and a short beak for grabbing leaves and slugs. Swamp Hen

 

Crakes and Rails Small birds with relatively long legs and long toes that allow them to move through thick vegetation that often fringes wetlands.     Crake Rail

Spoonbill Large bird with a long beak, shaped like a spoon to scoop up its food from the bottom of the wetland bed. Long legs are for wading through the hallow waters. Spoonbill

Field Work

Equipment: Pencils, a hard book or surface to lean on, map of the wetland.

1. Count how many of each type of bird (from Beak and Feet Fact Sheet) can be found in the wetland
   
2. On the map of the wetland mark where each type of bird is found and describe what the area looks like.

   Which ones are on the open water?
   Which ones are near the edge of the water?
   Which ones are hidden among plants?

3. Describe and draw what the birds are doing with their beaks and feet.
   

Classroom

Cut out the silhouette pictures of the birds and glue them onto the map of the wetland in the places that you saw them out in the field.

Match up the description below with the type of the birds listed below

Description	Type of Bird
Small birds with relatively long legs and long toes that allow them to move through thick vegetation that often fringes wetlands	CORMORANT AND DARTERS
Large bird with a long beak, shaped like a spoon to scoop up its food from the bottom of the wetland bed. Long legs are for wading through the hallow waters.	DUCK
Usually found in open water because they catch fish by swimming and diving	STILT AND HERON
Long legs for wading through shallows and long bill for reaching	SPOONBILL
Flat bill for sifting mud and webbed feet for swimming	CRAKE & RAIL
Wide feet for walking on weeds and a short beak for grabbing leaves and slugs	SWAMPHEN

 Note: A downloadable version of this resource is available in the "reports and related files" section below.

• Beaks and Feet (PDF - 95 kb)