Birds. ì<(sk$m)=bdcifa< +^-Ä-U-Ä-U. World of. The Wonderful. Life Science. by Linda B. Ross. Scott Foresman Reading Grade 2.4.3

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1 Suggested levels for Guided Reading, DRA, Lexile, and Reading Recovery are provided in the Pearson Scott Foresman Leveling Guide. Life Science The Wonderful World of Birds Genre Expository nonfiction Comprehension Skills and Strategy Compare and Contrast Draw Conclusions Graphic Organizers Text Features Captions Headings Glossary Scott Foresman Reading Grade ì<(sk$m)=bdcifa< +^-Ä-U-Ä-U ISBN by Linda B. Ross

2 The Wonderful World of Birds by Linda B. Ross Editorial Offices: Glenview, Illinois Parsippany, New Jersey New York, New York Sales Offices: Needham, Massachusetts Duluth, Georgia Glenview, Illinois Coppell, Texas Ontario, California Mesa, Arizona

3 Jason, Kim, and David are all bird lovers. They all keep pet birds at home. Jason has a parrot, Kim has a parakeet, and David has two canaries. Last week, Miss Craig, their teacher, asked the class to form groups and choose different animals to research. Of course, Jason, Kim, and David got together to research their favorite kind of animal birds! Every effort has been made to secure permission and provide appropriate credit for photographic material. The publisher deeply regrets any omission and pledges to correct errors called to its attention in subsequent editions. Unless otherwise acknowledged, all photographs are the property of Scott Foresman, a division of Pearson Education. Photo locators denoted as follows: Top (T), Center (C), Bottom (B), Left (L), Right (R), Background (Bkgd) Opener: AGE Fotostock America, Inc.; 1 Brand X Pictures; 4 Brand X Pictures; 5 Brand X Pictures; 6 Brand X Pictures, Digital Vision; 7 Getty Images; 8 Brand X Pictures; 9 Digital Stock; 10 Brand X Pictures; 11 Brand X Pictures; 12 Getty Images; 13 Corbis Royalty Free; 14 Corbis Royalty Free; 15 Corbis Royalty Free; 16 Digital Vision ISBN: Copyright Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Printed in the United States of America. This publication is protected by Copyright, and permission should be obtained from the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to: Permissions Department, Scott Foresman, 1900 East Lake Avenue, Glenview, Illinois V

4 Pet Birds The three researchers began with their own pet birds. They already knew a lot about them, but they checked their facts and learned some new things. Parrots, parakeets, and canaries are all warm-weather birds. Canaries get their name from the Canary Islands, where they were originally found. People enjoy having canaries around because of their wonderful singing voices. Most pet canaries are yellow, but canaries in the wild are dark green. Canaries eat seeds and plants. They need lots of water because they like to take baths. Parrots are popular pets because they are colorful. Some parrots can learn to repeat words or imitate sounds. Some parrots can even learn to do tricks. Parrots can be as short as three inches or as long as three feet! They eat fruit, nuts, seeds, and buds. Parakeets can also be trained. You can train a parakeet to sit on your finger or take a ride on your shoulder. Some parakeets can be trained to say words. Parakeets like to eat seeds and fruit. Parakeet Canary Parrots and parakeets can be found in parts of Australia, Africa, Asia, and tropical America. 4 5

5 Laughing gulls Seabirds I think we should research seabirds next, said Kim. Then we ll know a lot about birds that live near all kinds of water! Jason and David agreed, so they began with gulls. Gulls Most gulls live near the ocean. In winter they migrate to warm places and then fly back north in the summer. Gulls are scavengers and will feed on almost anything. Sometimes you will see gulls following ships. They are hoping that food will be thrown overboard! Puffins and Pelicans Puffins have brightly colored beaks and black and white feathers. They spend most of their lives on the ocean feeding on fish. In the summer they travel to rocky islands where they build their nests. Brown pelicans live on the coasts of North and South America. Their beaks have a pouch that they use as a fishing net. What a great way to catch fish! Pelicans have webbed feet and are good fliers and swimmers. Brown pelican Puffin 6 7

6 Birds of Prey Can we learn about birds of prey next? asked David. I want to find out about eagles and owls. Let s do it! said Kim and Jason. Eagles Birds of prey hunt other animals. They have powerful beaks and talons to catch and kill their prey. They have better eyesight than people do. Eagles hunt during the day. Often they hunt with a partner. The golden eagle eats rabbits, squirrels, and birds. Most of the time the bald eagle eats fish. There are about sixty kinds of eagles that live around the world. The great horned owl s wings span about 22 inches. Owls Owls have hooked beaks and strong talons, but they look very different from eagles. They have large eyes and a round face. Their short, thick bodies are covered with soft, fluffy feathers. Owls usually hunt at night because they can see well in dim light. They are fast fliers, and their soft feathers don t make much noise as they fly. They also have excellent hearing. All of these things make them good hunters. Owls eat small mammals, such as mice and rabbits, and other birds. 8 Bald eagle 9

7 10 Magellanic penguins Flightless Birds Next, Kim wanted to research flightless birds, or birds that cannot fly. This group includes some of the most interesting and unusual birds, such as penguins, ostriches, and kiwis. David and Jason agreed, and they started with penguins. Penguins Penguins live in places such as Antarctica, Australia, New Zealand, and South America. There are seventeen kinds of penguins. The smallest is the little blue penguin. The biggest is the emperor penguin. Penguins have patterns on their heads and necks that make them look different from one another. Penguins have smooth bodies that are made for swimming. They also have powerful flippers and webbed feet. Penguins may stay at sea for several weeks at a time. They eat fish and other sea creatures, such as shrimp and crabs. A penguin s enemies are leopard seals, sea lions, and killer whales. Most penguins stay in groups when they are in the water so that they can look out for each other. Penguins have thick coats of feathers. The feathers keep them warm and are a waterproof covering. Penguins that live in very cold places have an extra layer of feathers under their waterproof feathers. They also have thick layers of fat to keep them warm. Penguins walk with a waddle. They can walk about as fast as a person. 11

8 Ostriches Ostriches are the largest birds of all. They can grow to be up to eight feet tall. Instead of flying, they run from enemies, such as cheetahs and lions. They can run up to forty miles an hour on their long, powerful legs! Ostriches live in the desert or on the plains of Africa. They feed mainly on plants but will also eat lizards and turtles. They can live for about forty years, which is very unusual for a bird. A kiwi is about the size of a chicken. Kiwis Kiwis live in the forests of New Zealand. They are much smaller than ostriches and move more slowly. They hunt at night for earthworms, insects, and berries. They hide during the day. Kiwis are very shy and will run off if anyone comes near. They have large claws to protect themselves. Like many other birds, kiwis mate for life. They also lay very large eggs for such small birds! Have you ever seen a kiwi egg? 12 Ostrich 13

9 Waterfowl Finally, the three classmates wanted to learn about birds that live in and around freshwater areas, such as rivers, lakes, and ponds. These birds include geese and ducks. There is a pond near my house, said David. Let s go see some geese there! Geese Geese are similar to ducks, but they are larger. They have waterproof feathers, short legs, and webbed feet. Instead of quacking, they make a honking sound. Geese are strong fliers. When they migrate, groups of geese often fly in a V shape. Some geese are able to fly more than one thousand miles without stopping. You can find geese all over the Northern Hemisphere. Canada goose 14 15

10 Jason, Kim, and David completed their research and presented all the information to the class. They took turns telling about each group of birds and showed many colorful pictures. They ended their presentation by telling the class that there were lots of other birds to learn about. Would you like to find out about them? A group of young ducklings is called a brood. Ducks Young ducklings follow their mother everywhere. During this early stage of life, they have fluffy, yellow feathers. After a few weeks their appearance is completely transformed! Their yellow feathers are replaced by white, waterproof feathers. They grow very quickly and get much bigger. A duck s bill and feet are perfect for swimming and feeding in water. A duck pushes its long, wide bill into the mud to find food. Its webbed feet are good for swimming and walking on mud

11 Now Try This Fact Cards for Birds This book has a lot of information about different kinds of birds. It can be hard to remember it all. You can make a card game using the facts from the book. This will help you remember all the fun facts about birds. Here s How to Do It! 1. Use the information that you learned about birds to make five fact cards. 2. On one side of a card, write a question about a bird from the book. 3. On the other side of the card, write the fact that answers the question. Draw a picture that illustrates the answer. 4. Trade fact cards with a partner. Try to answer each question. Look on the other side of the card to see if your answer is right

12 Glossary appearance n. the way a person, animal, or thing looks. migrate v. go from one region to another with the change in seasons. research v. to hunt for facts or truth. scavengers n. animals that feed on dead and decaying animals or plants. stage n. period of development. talons n. claws of a bird of prey. transformed v. changed in form or condition. webbed adj. having the toes joined by a web. Reader Response 1. How are ducks and geese alike? How are they different? 2. Use a chart like the one below to help you record and organize what you learned about birds from this book. Three Kinds of Birds Seabirds Birds of Prey Flightless Birds 3. Different birds have different feet. How do talons and webbed feet help different birds survive? 4. Identify a fact that you learned from a picture or caption that you didn t learn from the text. 20