Birds are interesting creatures to watch and learn about. They have charming and colorful looks; have special adaptations, with a variety of food resources and unique habitats. Most birds are known to live on trees, but quite a number also stay in or around water bodies, in caves, mountain tops, and some around people’s neighborhoods (Picardi et al., 2019). This paper seeks to explore four types of birds: the American Robin, Wood Stork, Great Blue Heron, and the Double-Crested Cormorant.
The American Robin appears mostly in patios at the end of winter while they brood and nest during winter. According to The Cornell Lab (n.d.), the American Robins are popular birds when winter is almost coming to an end and their diet, insects, and earthworms. The birds live in the open coppices, nest in trees, and evenly distributed in their habitats, mostly in Northern America and partly in the Alaskan forests. Living in large flocks, sighting them could be more comfortable around fruiting trees and have low concerns over the conversation (Brambilla et al., 2020). Therefore, the climate range for American Robins lies between cool and dry and hot and dry since they can survive both in the Highlands, Jungles, and in the open woodlands and backyards in North America.
Wood Stork is a long-legged wetland bird that lives in colonies and marshy wetlands. Its leading food is fish and crustaceans. Trees towering above wetlands form its roosting and breeding grounds. According to the range map, population distribution among them is even with a climate range of wet and dry (Brambilla et al., 2020). The birds mostly are foragers in the wetlands, scarcely migrate, and their reproduction rate versus conservation concern rate is low.
They are found spread along the coasts of Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida. According to Picardi et al. (2019), the Wood Stork migration partially about 28%. Their migration could be caused by the need for newer resources and food supplements, where few chose not to migrate. Therefore, migration patterns will be directly proportional to food predictability and availability, together with adaptation levels of heterogeneity.
The marshy wetland is home to the Great Blue Heron, with fish and gophers as its main diet. It can also be found feeding in open turfs and pastures. It paddles with slow, deliberate steps during scavenging but attacks with lightning speed for its food (Picardi et al., 2019). Nesting and brooding happen on treetops. The range map shows that the birds are evenly distributed with a high population density and even breeding frequency. In the U.S., the bird is regularly spread along the estuaries, riverbanks, ponds, shorelines, and marshy edges.
The population of the Great blue heron is sometimes affected by disturbances and human actions during their nesting and brooding times. When a disturbance spur is introduced, their nest defense is very low, in which case they can quickly abandon their habitats despite the nesting period (Vennesland, 2009). Large body size does not allow them the opportunity for dynamic defense, especially against mobbing marauders that maneuver quickly. Therefore, apart from human disturbances, diseases, taciturn weather, animal predators, and resultant fluctuation of food resources play a significant role in the herons’ population development and flux.
The Double-Crested Cormorant is a bird with its habitat mostly in ponds and lakes, with fish as its main diet. According to Brambilla et al. (2020), the bird nests both on trees and in the ground dives in the water to find food, and has little conservation concerns. Flight patterns are irregular and commonly sun-dry themselves after diving in the waters. The birds’ climate range falls under the coastal climate, which is hot and wet, while Population distribution among them is even and dense, hence good breeders (Brambilla et al., 2020). Therefore, the aggressive and agile nature of the Double-crested Cormorant has led to the struggle for sustenance resources, posing a threat to the nesting and survival of other birds
Specialists’ birds have their leading food comprising of one or two types while generalists’ kinds of birds, on the other hand, have their diet comprising of a variety. According to The Cornell Lab (n.d.), the American Robin can be classified as a generalist bird. It eats various insects, including earthworms as the primary food, and wild fruits during winter. The bird’s tolerance range is high based on its survival ability in highlands, thickets, and in open spaces with unvarying densely distributed populations in all the niches.
In conclusion, the other remaining species can be categorized as specialists since they have a specific diet. The Wood Stork species is known for only consuming fish and crustaceans, the Double-Crested Cormorant diets on fish, while the Great Blue Heron also consumes fish and gophers. Marshy lands and waters are their main ecological niche compared to the American Robin that stays on dry land. These three species have scarce migration characteristics with limited exploitation of newer heterogenous grounds. Henceforth, the species can survive on narrow niches, have low tolerance ranges, and with limited survival to specific environments.
References
Brambilla, M., Rizzolli, F., Franzoi, A., Caldonazzi, M., Zanghellini, S., & Pedrini, P. (2020). A network of small protected areas favoured generalist but not specialized wetland birds in a 30-year period. Biological Conservation, 248, 108699. Web.
Picardi, S., Frederick, P. C., Borkhataria, R. R., & Basille, M. (2019). Partial migration in a subtropical wading bird in the Southeastern U.S. BioRxiv, 626473. Web.
The Cornell Lab. (n.d.). Online bird guide, bird ID help, life history, bird sounds from Cornell. All About Birds. Web.
Vennesland, R. (2009). Risk perception of nesting Great Blue Herons: Experimental evidence of habituation. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 88, 81–89. Web.