Sunday, September 27
Southern California is home to some amazing birds. But some of these birds are in trouble. They are called endangered. That means there are very few of them left in the wild.
People are working hard to help these birds. Let's meet three of them. Click "Learn more" under each bird to find out something surprising!
Photo: Scott Flaherty / USFWS, public domain
The California condor is a huge bird. Its wings can spread almost 10 feet wide — wider than a small car is long! In 1987, only 27 condors were left in the whole world. Scientists caught them all to keep them safe and helped them have chicks. Now hundreds of condors fly free again, some right here in Southern California's mountains.
Condors don't build a nest like most birds. A mom condor lays her one egg in a small cave on a cliff. Both the mom and dad take turns keeping it warm. A baby condor doesn't learn to fly until it is about six months old!
Video: "Condors for Kids" by Learn Bright, via YouTube
Photo: USFWS, public domain
This little bird is much smaller than a condor — only about as long as your hand! It likes to live in bushes near rivers and streams. When those river homes got destroyed, the vireo almost disappeared. In 1986, there were very few left. People have been fixing up river habitats ever since, and now there are thousands of vireos again.
Male vireos are picky builders. A male will build several "practice nests" before the female picks her favorite one. The winning nest looks like a tiny hanging cup, woven from grass and spider webs.
Video: "Least Bell's Vireo" by San Diego Bird Alliance, via YouTube
Photo: Micah Ashford / USFWS, public domain
The snowy plover is a small, pale bird that lives right on the sandy beach. Its feathers match the sand, so it can be very hard to see. The plover lays its eggs in a tiny nest scooped into the sand. People walking on the beach can accidentally get too close, so some beaches put up signs asking people to stay away from plover nests.
Plover parents have a clever trick. If a predator gets close to the nest, a parent will pretend its wing is broken and flop around on the sand. The predator follows the "hurt" bird away from the eggs — then the plover suddenly flies away safely!
Video: "How the threatened snowy plover nests along Sonoma Coast State Park" by The Press Democrat, via YouTube
Endangered — when there are very few of an animal left, and it needs our help to survive.
Example: "The California condor is an endangered bird."
The Moon is slowly moving away from Earth — about as fast as your fingernails grow!
Part A:
Part B – Sample Strong Answers:
Photos are public-domain U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service images, credited above.