Missouri River Bird Observatory

Description: The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has developed this interactive online tutorial to teach learners all about feathers by going through how feathers are unique to birds, five of the seven feather types and their structure, the functions of each feather type, and how feathers evolved.

Link: https://academy.allaboutbirds.org/features/all-about-feathers/#what-is-unique-to-birds.php

Teacher Notes:
There are six sections to this tutorial, but for this lesson students will only complete sections 1-4. They will stop when they get to section 5 “Meet a Feather Scientist”. This section will be covered in Lesson 4: Bird Language. 

Activity Summary: In this activity students will examine pictures and read about feather anatomy and structure. Then they will choose two feather types (wing, tail, contour, semiplume or down), draw them and answer questions about them.

• Students can examine photos and learn about the feather types at:
  • https://academy.allaboutbirds.org/features/all-about-feathers/#how-feathers-are-built.php
  • http://projectbeak.org/adaptations/feathers_types.htm
• Follow-up questions (for each feather):
  • Where is this type of feather on the bird’s body?
  • What is the function of this feather? 

Video Description: From brightly colored feathers that make a bird stand out, to mottled camouflage to help an animal hide, different colors serve different purposes throughout the animal kingdom. This video was made by Texas Parks and Wildlife.

Activity Summary: in this activity students will learn that birds are able to fly at different speeds and in different ways because of the shape of their wings and the Bernoulli Principle.

• The Bernoulli Principle – as air moves around an object it creates different pressures on the object; faster air creates less pressure than slower air which creates more pressure.

• Wing Airplane Activity sheet and Thinking about Birds and The Bernoulli Principal Data Sheet included in packet
• Creating the individual “birds” will take the most time for this activity (~ 35 minutes)
• The Bernoulli Principle – as air moves around an object it creates different pressures on the object; faster air creates less pressure than slower air which creates more pressure.
• Since bird wings are curved, the air going over the top of the wing moves faster than the slower moving air on the bottom side of the wing which creates more air pressure, thereby pushing the wing up from beneath and lifting the bird up.  A bird’s flight depends on the shape of the bird’s wing and the way they use them.
• See:  https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/vertebrates/flight/physics.htm  and https://birdsanctuary.kbs.msu.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2015/02/Flight_Investigation_2013.pdf 

Video description:  This video takes an up-close look at owl feathers to see how they help owls fly so silently.  Video made by Deeplook.

Video Description: This webinar is the perfect introduction to the diversity of the bird world as a bird’s beak is not only a tool they use for pretty much everything, but is also the first key feature to look for when identifying a species. In the webinar, we cover structural adaptation, generalists vs. specialists, and even a bit of evolution. All examples are birds that live in Missouri as we believe in place-based learning.  Video is made by Missouri River Bird Observatory (MRBO) staff.

Activity Summary:  Students will be asked to individually create their own bird with adaptations to reflect what and how they eat, where they live and move and how they take advantage of their surroundings through their adaptations.

• It is important that the students plan their bird’s lifestyle BEFORE they go to sketch what the bird looks like. This will help them better understand adaptation.
• It is also fun to have the students name their bird and maybe even come up with what the bird might sound like. We recommend having the students come up with their bird’s sound AFTER completing Lesson 4: Bird Language so they are more familiar with the various sounds birds make. 

Activity Summary:  In this activity, students will explore bird communication and how vocalizations help birds survive and reproduce.

• Students will be asked to listen to bird sounds, then write about the sounds, draw the sounds, and describe similarities and differences in the bird sounds they hear.
• Then they’ll be asked to think about what kind of messages birds need to communicate and how those messages might help with their survival. 

Topic: Feathers that Sing!

Missouri Science Standards: LS4.B.1

Video Series: Meet a Feather Scientist

Link: https://academy.allaboutbirds.org/features/all-about-feathers/#meet-a-feather-scientist.php 

• Thought this would be interesting for students
• Talks about feathers and evolution  

Activity Summary:  Students will use community science to learn about migratory birds in their local area and create graphs comparing migratory and non-migratory species.

• Student Instructions included in packet
• Students will explore real- life eBird data collected by community scientists.