Pictures of Birds
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Great Gray Owl
The great gray owl, Manitoba’s provincial bird, is one of many kinds of wildlife that live in the undeveloped forests of the province. Because its home is in the far north where it stays light much of the time, this owl must often hunt in daylight. Owls, which are generally nocturnal, prefer to hunt at night.
Great Kiskadee
Named for its loud kis-ka-dee call, the great kiskadee, Pitangus sulphuratus, inhabits open country from the southern United States to Argentina. Like other members of the flycatcher family, it feeds mainly on large insects that it catches in flight.
Green Heron
The green heron, Butorides virescens, is a small, solitary bird that lives among dense vegetation along the banks of ponds and marshes. It often sits in tall grass leaning motionless over the water watching for small fish to swim past. It strikes quickly at prey, seldom missing with its pointed bill.
Hawfinch
Native to Europe, Africa, and Asia, the shy hawfinch, Coccothraustes coccothraustes, is the largest member of the finch family. It is distinguished by its large, powerful bill, which it uses to crack open a variety of hard seeds. The bill changes from gray in winter to blue-black in spring.
White Egret
A great white egret flies with twigs for its nest. Egrets were nearly hunted into extinction for their feathers, which were used to decorate hats. Now they are protected by legislation.
Ivory-billed Woodpecker
John James Audubon’s Ivory-billed Woodpecker is from The Birds of North America, published between 1827 and 1838. Audubon was a perfectionist and went out into the field to collect specimens to work from in his studio. His work has the clarity and attention to detail that characterize high-quality scientific illustration, as well as the feeling for composition and line quality that characterize fine art.
Penguin
Penguins always return to their ancestral nesting sites to lay their eggs and rear their young. The emperor penguin, the largest of the penguins, lays its single egg during the coldest time of the Antarctic year, when temperatures drop as low as -62 degrees C (-80 degrees F). The egg is incubated on top of the parent’s feet, protected by abdominal folds of skin. Young chicks remain under these abdominal folds until they are able to regulate their own body temperature.
Purple Gallinule
The purple gallinule, Porphyrula martinica, ranges from South Carolina to South America. A powerful swimmer, the cootlike gallinule is less successful in flight. The bird spends most of its time hiding among the grasses of its marsh habitat. It forages on the muddy shores for small invertebrate animals and vegetation. Unlike other members of the rail family, the gallinule bill is too short to probe beneath the surface.
Red-Tailed Hawk
The red-tailed hawk, Buteo jamaicensis, is the most abundant hawk in North America. Although its plumage varies, all adults have a characteristic reddish-brown tail. It hunts by gliding over open countryside searching for rodents, insects, birds, and snakes.
Rhode Island Red
The Rhode Island Red, prolific year-round, is one of several American class breeds valued for the number and quality of its eggs.
Great Gray OwlThe great gray owl, Manitoba’s provincial bird, is one of many kinds of wildlife that live in the undeveloped forests of the province. Because its home is in the far north where it stays light much of the time, this owl must often hunt in daylight. Owls, which are generally nocturnal, prefer to hunt at night.
Great KiskadeeNamed for its loud kis-ka-dee call, the great kiskadee, Pitangus sulphuratus, inhabits open country from the southern United States to Argentina. Like other members of the flycatcher family, it feeds mainly on large insects that it catches in flight.
Green HeronThe green heron, Butorides virescens, is a small, solitary bird that lives among dense vegetation along the banks of ponds and marshes. It often sits in tall grass leaning motionless over the water watching for small fish to swim past. It strikes quickly at prey, seldom missing with its pointed bill.
HawfinchNative to Europe, Africa, and Asia, the shy hawfinch, Coccothraustes coccothraustes, is the largest member of the finch family. It is distinguished by its large, powerful bill, which it uses to crack open a variety of hard seeds. The bill changes from gray in winter to blue-black in spring.
White EgretA great white egret flies with twigs for its nest. Egrets were nearly hunted into extinction for their feathers, which were used to decorate hats. Now they are protected by legislation.
Ivory-billed WoodpeckerJohn James Audubon’s Ivory-billed Woodpecker is from The Birds of North America, published between 1827 and 1838. Audubon was a perfectionist and went out into the field to collect specimens to work from in his studio. His work has the clarity and attention to detail that characterize high-quality scientific illustration, as well as the feeling for composition and line quality that characterize fine art.
PenguinPenguins always return to their ancestral nesting sites to lay their eggs and rear their young. The emperor penguin, the largest of the penguins, lays its single egg during the coldest time of the Antarctic year, when temperatures drop as low as -62 degrees C (-80 degrees F). The egg is incubated on top of the parent’s feet, protected by abdominal folds of skin. Young chicks remain under these abdominal folds until they are able to regulate their own body temperature.
Purple GallinuleThe purple gallinule, Porphyrula martinica, ranges from South Carolina to South America. A powerful swimmer, the cootlike gallinule is less successful in flight. The bird spends most of its time hiding among the grasses of its marsh habitat. It forages on the muddy shores for small invertebrate animals and vegetation. Unlike other members of the rail family, the gallinule bill is too short to probe beneath the surface.
Red-Tailed HawkThe red-tailed hawk, Buteo jamaicensis, is the most abundant hawk in North America. Although its plumage varies, all adults have a characteristic reddish-brown tail. It hunts by gliding over open countryside searching for rodents, insects, birds, and snakes.
Rhode Island RedThe Rhode Island Red, prolific year-round, is one of several American class breeds valued for the number and quality of its eggs.
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