According to a 2017 study by the American Museum of Natural History, there are about 18,000 bird species on Earth — nearly double the number previously thought. One of the study's authors said that this number has to do with the impact of conservation practices.
Many bird species have already become extinct due to predators or human activities. Despite significant conservation efforts in recent years, many species are critically endangered today, including some of the birds on this list. So let's appreciate these strange birds while we still can.
10. Inca Tern
Named for its habitat, which was once ruled by the ancient Inca empire, this bird can only be found near the Humboldt Current. Inca terns have adapted to hunt anchovies and other small fish by diving in cold waters. Sometimes they also collect the remains of dolphins and sea lions.
From a distance, this bird may appear similar to any other common bird. But up close it is impossible not to notice the most unusual feature of the Incas - a dashing white mustache. Whiskers grow in both males and females. This highly social species nests in colonies of several thousand birds, usually laying eggs in rocks or crevasses.
Although the Inca terns are not considered to be endangered, the decline in anchovy stocks due to capture could have a serious impact on their numbers. Cats and rats on some islands can also interfere with their nesting. In 2009, the Peruvian government established the Guano Islands and Capes National Wildlife Refuge, which protects the Inca and sea lion colonies on 28 guano islands and cliffs.
9. Amazonian Royal Flycatcher
Despite the fact that all royal flycatchers are quite similar, some experts divide them into four subspecies depending on their geographic location. The Amazonian royal flycatcher is widespread in North and Central South America east of the Andes. They inhabit mainly moist and deciduous low-lying forests.
Royal flycatchers can be recognized by their unique ornate crest, which ranges in different shades of red and orange. The ridge usually lies so that the head of the flycatcher looks like a hammer. When raised, the ridge has a characteristic fan-shaped shape.
In addition to their location, the Amazonian royal flycatcher is distinguished by a cinnamon coloration of the rump and tail. These birds are also smaller and darker than other flycatchers. In males, the combs are exclusively red, in females they are orange. As their name suggests, royal flycatchers primarily feed on insects.
Although described as rare, the Amazonian royal flycatcher is not seriously endangered. This can be attributed in part to their habit of nesting on branches above the water, which helps keep young birds safe.
8. Southern Giant Petrel
The southern giant petrel is a large bird with pointed wings and an enormous beak. Has two distinct color forms - white and dark. Only about 5 percent of southern giant petrels are white in color, but dark birds tend to turn white with age.
A hunched back during flight is another common characteristic. This circumpolar species is distributed from the subantarctic islands south to the Antarctic continent.
Due to their diet of abundant elephant seals and sea lion carcasses, the Southern Giant Petrel is known as the sea vulture. Their other delicacies include fish, squid, penguins and albatrosses.
These wild birds are often seen with bloody heads while feasting on animal remains. There are also reports of southern giant petrels hitting other seabirds against the surf or keeping them underwater to drown them.
In addition, southern giant petrels are known to spew their rotten stomach oils when faced with threats or adversity, such as fishing boats. The disgruntled sailors, whose fish they sometimes steal, nicknamed the birds “stinkpots”.
Researchers from the University of Barcelona have found that some species of Antarctic birds may be at risk of human disease. Birds, including kelp gulls, penguins and southern giant petrels, can pick up bacteria such as Salmonella and Campylobacter. After testing faecal samples from more than 600 seabirds from several different locations, three conclusions were drawn suggesting reverse zoonosis.
7. Kakapo
New Zealand was an ideal place for the development of isolated animal species, separated from the rest of the world. As a result, the country is now known for its many unique animals. And the kakapo is one of the most bizarre species among them. It is the heaviest parrot in the world, the only flightless parrot and one of the longest-living birds on Earth.
Kakapos do not reach puberty until 9-10 years of age and are believed to live up to 90 years. However, the oldest specimen died about 80 years ago. Despite its long life, the kakapo population has been under threat of extinction for over a century, because they reproduce only every 2-5 years, live on the ground and freeze in case of danger.
Parrots were abundant until the first settlers appeared to hunt them for their feathers and meat. Land clearing and other predators — such as domestic cats, dogs, and ermines — nearly drove the kakapo to extinction. The first conservation efforts began in 1894, but they were unsuccessful until a kakapo breeding program was established in 1995.
When the program began, only 51 kakapos remained, but their numbers have increased significantly since then. According to the New Zealand Department of Conservation, there are now 148 live kakapos.
6. Guiana Rock Rooster
The Guiana Rock Rooster is native to Colombia, Venezuela, Southern Guyana, and Northern Brazil. Both males and females can be instantly recognized by their constantly erect ridge that covers their wide beak. Male birds have an incredibly bright orange color. Meanwhile, the females are brown, with smaller ridges and a black beak with a yellow tip.
Named for their dependence on huge boulders and rocky caverns for breeding, Guiana roosters spend a lot of time courting. Up to 50 males participate in communal Leks, which consist of martial arts and dance performances. Females prefer males who show dominance by controlling Lek's center.
Communication between Guiana roosters encompasses a wide variety of sounds. They can snap their beaks to create a popping sound. In Lek, males make loud, crowing, chicken-like sounds. While searching for food, Guiana roosters are known to make loud noises that were similar to the sound of a rubber duck being squeezed.
Their favorite foods are fruits and berries. But if they are not there, the birds will be content with insects, small reptiles or frogs.
5. Sri Lankan frogmouth
The Sri Lankan frogmouth can only be found in the dense rainforests of India and Sri Lanka. It's no secret how it got its name, its body-wide head and large, gaping mouth. The males are gray and covered with many white patches, while the females compete with a rusty red in rare white patches. They also have a wide, fixed, flattened beak.
These nocturnal birds rest on the branches most of the day, and at night they hunt insects.The Sri Lankan frogmouth is not considered an endangered species, but the recent trend of replacing shady coffee plantations with more lucrative tea plantations has destroyed some of the native bird forests. Other threats to their habitat are associated with tillage, forestry, fire and pasture.
In the 19th century, the frogmouth was found only in Sri Lanka. The bird has been sighted farther and farther north in recent years due to climate change. Another animal species, the brown palm civet, has also been seen moving further north. Scientists are concerned that these habitat changes could be indicators of an increase in global warming.
4. Magnificent frigate
The magnificent frigate uses its deeply forked tail to easily navigate through tropical breezes. It prefers to fly along the coasts of the southern United States, Mexico and the Caribbean when the winds are strong, keeping the bird in the air. This allows them to stay aloft for up to two months without a single landing.
Since magnificent frigate birds do not have waterproof feathers, they avoid landing in water. Wet birds cannot fly. Instead, they feed by chasing other birds for food and snatching it in the air. It takes a lot of practice to become sky pirates, so young frigates chase each other with sticks. When one bird drops the stick, the other catches it.
The greatest feature of the magnificent frigates is the large, bright red throat sac that males inflate to attract females. It is also the only seabird with a significant difference in appearance between the sexes. Females are usually larger than males and have a white throat instead of a red pouch.
3. Umbrella bird
Elvis Presley would have envied the feathers hanging over the beak, similar to a hairstyle with fashionable bangs. These bizarre birds also feature a long, inflatable goatee that hangs from the middle of their chest. It is covered with short, scaly feathers and, when inflated, can resemble a pinecone.
Males use these decorations to attract females during the mating season. The males of the umbrella birds are more luxuriant and have twice the number of females. Compared to most birds, they are clumsy flyers and prefer to jump from tree branches.
Umbrella birds play a large role in the consumption of the fruits of tropical trees and the distribution of their seeds. Research has shown the symbiotic survival of these rare birds and rainforests. To harm birds is to harm the forest, and vice versa. Unfortunately, both umbrella birds and rainforests are slowly disappearing.
2. Helmet-billed kalao
The helmeted kalao are large, noisy birds that inhabit the pristine forests of Brunei, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Myanmar. The structure on the beak of a rhinoceros is called a helmet. Unlike other hornbill species, the helmet of a hornbill is durable and heavy, accounting for more than 10 percent of the animal's weight.
The helmet-billed kalao can be recognized by its quirky facial features and long central tail feathers. The wrinkled skin on its throat, known as a gular bag, is used to carry food back to its nest. The bag is red for males and turquoise for females. These fruit-loving birds are very picky. Only the best low-lying tropical rainforests with abundant fruit-bearing trees provide a suitable habitat.
During incubation, the females of these birds are sealed in the nest with mud. The males then provide food by belching fruit from the throat sac through a small hole in the nest.
Due to the high demand from China for carvings made from avian helmets, the helmet-billed kalao is in danger of extinction. Reproduction in this species is very slow, and a small amount of poaching can disproportionately reduce their numbers. More than 30 conservation organizations are doing everything they can to keep this species alive.
1. Goatzin
Hoatzins are widespread and quite common throughout Central South America. They often sit out in the open, but retreat to tighter cover when threatened. The bird is commonly found in trees and bushes along rivers and lakes. While the hoatzin may appear intimidating, it cannot fly and its movements can be described as awkward.
Visually, the bird is characterized by a free ridge, bright blue skin of the face, red eyes. However, the bird's most unusual feature is its multichamber stomach. Hoatsins are sometimes called flying cows because they feed on young leaves and buds, which are assimilated by bacteria and microbes. It is the only bird in the world that can survive by eating only leaves.
As if the digestive system of cattle was small, hoatins, moreover, are born with claws on their wings. Young goatsin can swim and often jump into the water when faced with danger. They then use their claws to climb back up the trees. Wing claws were common in ancient birds, but this species has managed to preserve them for generations. The claws are lost as the hoatzin mature.
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