Looking at the structure of a bird's beak is an easy way to make a lot of determinations about the bird itself. Here's everything you need to know about bird beaks.
What's the purpose of bird beaks?
A bird without a beak would be like a human without a mouth or hands. Bird beaks are used for eating, gathering, building houses, cleaning and getting water. Without bird beaks, birds couldn’t do many of those things. They could probably build a nest using their feet, but they would have no way to feed the babies that are supposed to fill the nest!
How are bird beaks used?
Different birds use bird beaks differently. There are many, many different shapes and sizes of bird beaks, but all bird beaks are shaped according to what the bird eats. In fact, if you learn basic beak shape, you'll be able to tell a lot about a bird when you get a glimpse at its beak. Let's check out a few.
Bird beaks that are hooked, like a bald eagles beak, mean that the bird is a predator. Birds that have hooked beaks use their beaks to kill live prey. They have powerful jaws and use the beak to bite or break the neck of its prey. This type of beak is also used to tear the prey apart and pluck off its feathers.
On the other side of the spectrum, you have bird beaks that are thin and pointed because they are used for hunting insects. Bird that have this type of beak, need the slender beak to pick insects out of trees and off foliage.
Woodpeckers have a variation of this kind of beak. Bird peaks on woodpeckers are thin and slender, but their beaks are much tougher. Their beaks point at the tip so they can dip them into trees, specifically under a tree's bark, where they will find a nice dinner of small insects.
Hummingbirds also have long beaks, but they're tubular in shape. Bird beaks in hummingbirds are long so they can reach the nectar and tubular because the beak acts like a straw that allows them to sip nectar.
Many of the birds that you see in your back yard, such as the sparrow, have bird beaks that are smaller and cone shaped. Bird beaks that are shaped in this manner are used for cracking seeds. The structure of these bird beaks — short and stubby — is great for creating a strong force that will snap through the tough shell of a seed.
