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Greetings All,
Thanks for all the pleasant replies to my little
whimsy. If you don't wish to know my answers yet, close the message
now.
Some of the answers are tricky and possibly have
double meanings. I did not really want to make it too definitional, it needed to
have some fun to it. Scores were quite consistent, everyone got from 19 to 23
correct. Odd numbers correct confused me at first however that confusion is a
little dumb of me. An answer can have 3 or 5 transposed, rather than just pairs
transposed.
Everyone got correct the answers to bird:
4,5,6,9,10,16,18,19,20,22,25. The only ones that several of you got transposed
from what I had, were between the two penguins and between the Goshawk and the
Peregrine Falcon. Both are very subtle points. The other wrong answers showed no
particular pattern, except it is curious that nobody got 24 correct. As far as I
know Storks (maybe not all of them, characteristically excrete onto their legs
(maybe not every time), the New World Vultures also do this. This is one of the
several features recently used to create a taxonomic connection between these
two groups and go against the idea that the New World Vultures are related to
the raptors. Probably they are not, they have a convergent likestyle and so
a similar appearance. As in New World Vultures are storks on short legs and with
hooked beaks.
Both Penguins use their feet for toboganning but
the Adelie Penguins usually have nests of stones, so using their feet to
incubate eggs on ice is a less strong answer than it is for the Emperor Penguin,
that sets the choice between the two. Most raptors kill prey with their feet but
the distinction is that the Peregrine Falcon commonly kills with its beak,
rather than with its feet. Hence both choices are correct but one is better. As
for the Magpie-lark, that is an obscure one. Mostly passerines don't do anything
interesting with their feet except stand, perch, climb, walk & hop on
them. This stirring up puddles is a little tricky, inserted because it is a
curious behaviour that they do and few other birds do. I don't think the
Magpie-lark is associated with doing any of the other listed
things.
I sure hope this inserted table comes through
formatted correctly (it is rather wide on my screen).
Philip
|
Answers |
Bird |
Feet |
Comment |
|
1 |
Y |
Adelie Penguin |
Toboganning |
Emperor Penguin also does this but 8J is a stronger
fit |
|
2 |
I |
Blue Bird of Paradise |
Hanging |
Males in courtship display hang upside down by their
feet |
|
3 |
U |
Blue-footed Booby |
Social signalling |
Exaggerated waving display of their blue feet |
|
4 |
D |
Brolga |
Dancing |
All or most Cranes dance with bowing and jumping |
|
5 |
R |
Brush Turkey |
Raking leaves |
Mound building with rotting leaves |
|
6 |
B |
Button-quail |
Clearing circles |
Clear plate sized circles |
|
7 |
L |
Cassowary |
Kicking |
Kick for defence and have sharp nails |
|
8 |
J |
Emperor Penguin |
Holding egg off the ice |
Characteristic behaviour of them, Adelie Penguins have
nests |
|
9 |
Z |
Flamingo |
Withstand alkaline lakes |
Well known feature |
|
10 |
P |
Flightless Cormorant |
Only form of transport on water & land |
It can't fly, it swims and walks using its feet |
|
11 |
M |
Goshawk |
Killing prey |
As distinct from 17A, kills prey with clutching feet |
|
12 |
S |
Harrier Hawk (African) |
Reach into cavities for prey |
Has double jointed legs to extract prey from within
hollows |
|
13 |
Q |
Hummingbird |
Only perching |
Does not climb or move its feet, they only move by flying
|
|
14 |
X |
Magpie-lark |
Stirring up puddles |
Sometimes do this, no doubt other, not listed, birds do
too |
|
15 |
E |
Mousebird |
Direct 2, 3 or 4 toes forward |
A unique feature of this African order of birds |
|
16 |
F |
Palm Cockatoo |
Drumming |
Drums on perches with a stick held in its foot |
|
17 |
A |
Peregrine Falcon |
Catching prey |
Generally kills prey with its beak, feet used for
capture |
|
18 |
V |
Phalarope |
Spinning |
They swim in little circles when feeding |
|
19 |
T |
Ptarmigan |
Snowshoe |
In winter grows feathers on toes like snow shoes |
|
20 |
G |
Roadrunner |
Escaping from Coyote |
From the cartoon and probably true also |
|
21 |
C |
Rosella |
Climbing branches |
Are adept at climbing, 2 I, 15 E & 16 F are stronger
matches |
|
22 |
W |
Secretary-bird |
Stamping on snakes |
Unique hunting style, its way of subdueing prey |
|
23 |
O |
Sparrow |
Name for large group of birds |
Sparrow > Passer > Passerine = perching, named for use of
feet |
|
24 |
H |
Stork |
Excreting on |
They squirt onto their own legs, possibly for assisting
cooling |
|
25 |
K |
Swamphen |
Holding water plants |
They hold bulbs etc in feet whilst biting off soft
bits |
|
26 |
N |
Woodcock |
Moving its babies |
They can fly whilst holding little chicks between
legs |
|
