TRANSCRIPT

INTRODUCTION

I'm Marty Stouffer. What slices, dices, shreds, and stabs, sips and siphons, hoots and hammers, picks and plucks and preens... of course, it's the bill of a bird. Bills come in all shapes and sizes, from the delicate sipping straw of the hummingbird...to the expandable suitcase this brown pelican carries around on its never ending search for seafood.

All birds have a bill, which they use in various ways for transportation, communication, and feeding, but every bill uniquely holds the key to unlocking the secrets of its individual identity. Let's look closer at how "THE BILL MAKES THE BIRD".

Regardless of which came first, the chicken or the egg, at some point in time, every bird must come out of its egg.

A Wild Turkey hen waits patiently.

Nature provides a temporary 'egg tooth' which baby birds need to crack the shell. Hatching time can range from several hours to several days.

In time lapse, we can see how this yet to be born Wild Turkey chick uses its bill to cut the hard outer shell in a circular pattern, and then pushes apart the two halves of the soft inner shell.

This exhausted chick has learned one of the many uses of its primary tool.

And uses are amazingly numerous, from cracking nuts with a conical (kan-i-k'l) bill to sipping nectar with a terete (te-'ret) bill from shelling seeds with a delicate bill to stabbing supper with a sturdy bill. Some are fairly familiar and some are quite exotic and some . . . yes some . . .are lethal weapons.

Just like newborn children, some baby birds are completely dependent on their parents for food. Blue Jays are one of the most successful general feeders in the bird world. They'll eat just about anything — mostly berries and seeds, but also insects, worms, snails, and even baby birds of other species.

Its all purpose bill is long for plucking, sharp for tearing and powerful for cracking.

Both of these devoted Blue Jay parents will feed and protect their nestlings. While seeds and berries are fine in winter, bugs and worms are more important now — growing baby birds need this essential source of high protein.

Squirrels and larger birds are the main ingredients in the Goshawk's diet. This dominant female bird, which can be up to twice as large as the male, relies little on her partner to raise her fuzzy white chick. All members of the Hawk family, which includes eagles, hawks and kites, have strongly hooked bills — or beaks — with small nostrils located on the upper mandible. This Goshawk has no trouble ripping off pieces of meat, with the fur — or feathers — included, to feed her chick. The fur or feathers are essential for lining the bird's stomach to protect it from the sharp bones they inevitably ingest.

As Goshawks are the largest of the Accipiters — the group of swift flying, short winged hawks — the Sharpshinned Hawk is the smallest. This quick little hunter is only about one foot tall.

Some believe Red-winged Blackbird to be the most common American bird. However, if this Sharpshin has anything to say about it... there will be one less.

More often than not the hawk will miss — reminding us that, it's not easy to be the predator.

While virtually all birds of prey catch and kill their quarry with their strong sharp talons, a powerful beak is necessary to tear it into bite size pieces.

Every bird's bill, comprised of an upper and lower mandible, has evolved to satisfy particular needs. (We can accurately assess a bird's lifestyle based solely on the characteristics of its bill). This hawk is a hunter, with a hooked, sturdy tool designed for ripping and tearing.

While the blackbird, has a straight, sharp bill, enabling it to poke, pluck and select.

Predatory birds, because of food scarcity, are often forced to fast for days, especially in winter. This does not seem to adversely effect their health.

Although this Sharpshin may not eat again for a few days, chances are another male Red-winged blackbird will move into this territory right away, continuing the cycle of — hunter and the hunted.

Down in the Florida Everglades a different battle is waging.

The Apple snail is diminishing, and it's the only food of the endangered Everglade Kite. At one point the birds numbered less than 20. Recent estimates are a bit more encouraging, but even at 120, it's existence still hangs in the balance. Due to development and drought of man-made canals, the Apple snail's habitat has been drained and destroyed, thus affecting the population of the Kite.

A River Cooter investigates, but does not have the right tool for the complicated job. The Kite's, perfectly curved beak fits like a key fits a lock. Being one of the most specialized feeders in the entire animal kingdom, the Everglade Kite will almost certainly suffer as humans encroach on the Apple snail — and River Cooter's — shrinking habitat.

Ornate plumage makes the Great Blue Heron look like the king of the wetlands. Standing four feet tall with a seven foot wingspan, this is the largest of our herons, and the proud owner of an impressive spear.

The Anhinga carries a similar spear as it departs to hunt underwater.

As the Heron preens, it performs the important task of caring for its feathers. Early in the 20th century, Heron numbers were declining due to the market for their beautiful plumage. Now the Great Blue Heron is the most widespread and most well known of all our wading birds.

Preferring the open edge of almost any wetland, a Great Blue heron will stand in shallow water waiting for its prey. Small fish will usually be caught crosswise, while larger fish will be speared. This immature Great Blue shows us how breaking the barbs off this catfish allows for easier swallowing. While this youngster seems to be doing fine, some of these beautiful birds have been found choked to death from trying to swallow fish which were too large.

Another long-billed resident of the swamp, the Limpkin, calls to her young. Some describe this call as chilling, while others talk of its gentle melody.

While her brood of five fuzzy chicks stretch in the sun, mother goes hunting for her favorite, but not exclusive food — again, the Apple snail.

Unlike the Everglade Kite, the Limpkin does not have a snail-shaped bill. She holds the shell upside-down and waits for the snail to emerge. Then with the soft tip of her bill, she grabs the snail and pulls it out.

Practicing their preening, these chicks are removing dirt and ecto-parasites.

All birds spend a great deal of time caring for their feathers — preening. It's no wonder, feathers provide insulation, camouflage, color and the ability to fly. They are essential for survival. Needless to say, the bird's bill is the perfect tool for the task.

A bill is considered long when it is noticeably longer than the bird's head. A long bill can be straight, as in the woodcock.

It can be curved, like this white Ibis, which probes deep into the sand for its favorite food -- mud crabs. Or hooked, as in the Cormorant, which dives for its slippery prey. The Black Skimmer scoops up its prey while skimming the surface. Long bills can be flat, like the Roseate ('ro-ze-at) Spoonbill. This bill shape is called spatulate ('spach-u-lat). A long bill can even be recurved, like the elegant American Avocet which sweeps like a spoonbill and dabbles like a duck. A long bill will be used for everything from preening... to probing, like this Sandpiper. Some are sturdy-made for stabbing, like this colorful Louisiana heron. Others are delicate for sipping, like this Anna's Hummingbird.

A Hummingbird eats three times more calories a day than a person! That's not comparatively -- that's 10,000 calories! Its tiny bill is either straight or curved, and fits the type of flower it prefers.

From dainty to dramatic.

This Acorn Woodpecker has one of nature's strongest bills. Nesting holes are not their only construction projects. Working in a colony, they also use their bills to create holes in which they store acorn by the score. Wisely, the holes are not drilled deep enough to harm the trees. The stored acorns eaten from fall to spring. As many as 20,000 acorns have been seen in a giant sycamore tree.

Another hard-working bird, which has proven instrumental in the survival of the Rocky Mountain Whitebark Pine, is the Clark's Nutcracker. Not only does the pinching bill of the Nutcracker snap up insects; it is quite skilled at reaching in and plucking out the seeds of the Whitebark. The seeds, within the pinecone mature in autumn. But they lack a membrane wing, and with no means of dispersal, they simply fall to the ground. Thanks to the Nutcracker — carrying up to 70 seeds in a pouch under its tongue — seeds are planted widely.

One Nutcracker will transport and plant up to 30,000 seeds in a season, and will, remarkably, recover about 70% of them.

While these far-from-forgetful birds often dig up their buried treasures many months later, some seeds remain hidden, and become the future generations of Whitebark Pine.

Down south in Louisiana, young Louisiana Herons survey their lush domain.

Their neighbor, a Roseate ('ro-se-at) Spoonbill is unmistakable, with its large spatulate ('spach-u-lat) bill. Able to feed in salt, brackish or fresh water, this colorful bird is partial to crustaceans. A swinging motion is used to stir up the bottom, while tiny nerve endings on the inner edge of the bill are used to feel around for food.

A similar species is the Northern Shoveler, also sporting a spatulate bill. The Shoveler does not have nerves, but rather comb-like ridges which act as a strainer when the tongue pushes out unwanted water.

The ornamental male Wood duck and his plainer partner have smaller strainers, as do most duck bills.

Mergansers, the submarines of the duck family, are adapted for pursuing fish. They have the closest replica of "teeth" in the bird world. Although they don't use their teeth for chewing, this specific adaptation comes in very handy for gripping slippery seafood. Look closely at this female common merganser and you can see the serrated edge. Without her unique set of pliers, many-a-minnow would slip away.

Also a fisherbird, the white Pelican has a bill three times the size of its stomach.

Gulls will eat just about anything and have the bill to prove it, but they're no match for a hungry Pelican pirate. Fortunately the gulls are resourceful and with their all-purpose bill — long for carrying and hooked for tearing, they should have no trouble scrounging up another meal.

Hot pink feathers help us identify this exotic bird as the rare American Flamingo. Even more unusual is its eccentric, although functional, down curved bill. Similar, but more specialized than a duck's, the tiny groves along either side of its bill function as a strainer. Swinging its bill back and forth in shallow water, the Flamingo scoops up mud with a pumping action. Water and silt are strained out through the groves, and what is left are the small animals and plants that make up the Flamingo's dinner.

In springtime, off the rocky coast of Maine, the male Puffin becomes more attractive to females, by growing a larger brighter bill. Plates of red, yellow and blue grow and thicken in anticipation of a successful season of seduction. Their bill is also used as a tool, a weapon, and for communication — pointed up for friendship, and down for alarm.

Related to Penguins, but much better at flying, the Puffin spends most of the year out at sea. During the breeding season, these highly skilled divers will catch fish and carry them crosswise in their bill back to their young. With a round tongue and serrated edge he can carry up to 30 small fish.

Summer on the rocky cliff is a chaotic symphony of whistles and chatter, and not only from the gregarious Puffin, but also his neighbor the Razorbill. Come September, the breeding grounds will be deserted as the colony scatters out over the ocean.

Millions of Americans have joined in the ever increasing pastime of bird-watching or birding. It's not surprising considering the entertainment value of these natural performers.

They're as fun to watch as they are fascinating to study -- as varied as they are beautiful.

CONCLUSION

Although many species of birds are thriving, some of our feathered friends are teetering on the brink of extinction. But birders everywhere help scientist to monitor the trends. So keep watching for the rare — and the common. Look closely and you just may agree that "THE BILL MAKES THE BIRD".

I'm Marty Stouffer. Until next time, enjoy our WILD AMERICA.