Wintering birds of Tatarstan - wintering birds of Tatarstan. Birds of the Republic of Tatarstan What birds of prey live in Tatarstan

Solovyov Anton: “How do birds hibernate?” In winter, our birds - neighbors try to stay closer to human habitation: it is warmer and more satisfying here. Fed up and frost is not so terrible. A good dinner warms you from the inside, heat goes through your whole body. If you do not lose weight over the winter and keep the fat under the skin, then even the severe cold that passes through the feather is not dangerous either: it cannot freeze the fatty lining. But the trouble is, in winter it is not easy to find food. It is difficult for those birds that ate insects in the summer, they switch to cones, nuts and grains. And this food is still to be found. Difficult times are easier to get through together. And in the winter they gather different birds in flocks. After all, how is it in a pack? I found one food, immediately notified everyone: everyone will be full. It is easier to notice the danger in time, always someone is on guard while others are feeding or dozing. If you need to fight off a large predator, then here it’s more convenient for everyone together. So it’s impossible for a little bird to be alone in winter. Even those of the birds that usually live alone, and then for the winter they are nailed to some flock.

Semenov Daniil: "Nututatch and woodpecker" In the park, garden, near the feeders in a flock of different tits, you can see the nuthatch. This small short-tailed bird immediately attracts attention with its ability to quickly run upside down on a tree trunk. Among the birds, the best climbers crawl. They are helped in this by a special arrangement of paws with very long fingers and claws. All the warm season, these birds run through the trees, looking for pests. In winter, they have to sit on a plant-based diet. A piece of unsalted fat in a feeder or a nuthatch bug turned up in the bark is a delicacy. The color of the bird is bluish-gray, the neck, chest and abdomen are white, a black stripe comes from the beak. The woodpecker is a conspicuous bird. His back, wings, tail are black, as if he was wearing a black tailcoat. The throat, chest, abdomen are white, and on the head there is a bright red cap. It sits on a tree trunk, clutching the bark with its claws, and also leans on its tail. The woodpecker's tail is unusual: with pointed ends, very hard feathers. Resting its tail against the unevenness of the bark, the woodpecker holds firmly on a sheer trunk. Such strength, he needs to hit a tree hard. After all, the woodpecker feeds on worms, beetles and other insects that spoil the tree, gnawing passages deep into the trunk.

Bikbova Ilsina: "Tits" Titmouse are one of the most useful birds for humans, because they destroy many pests. In the spring, when they have a baby, they can eat as many insects per day as they themselves weigh. These birds are nomadic, but they do not fly for long distances, only for short ones - from the northern edges they can move to the southern ones. There are several types of titmouse, and all of them are useful. The more of these birds, the better. They need to be attracted with feeders. In spring and summer, tits feed only on insects, while in winter and autumn they eat berries and grain. So that the wind does not blow away their food, you can make a ball from lard (unsalted) and “glue” raw sunflower seeds, oats, millet, and flax to it. This food can be hung on a tree or near a window. Titmouse also relishes unsalted lard.

Egorova Liana "Sparrows" Sparrows of two types live in the middle zone of the European part of Russia: house (city) and field (village). They are found together in mixed flocks, especially in late autumn and winter. In spring and summer, individuals of each species stick to their favorite habitats, where they build nests and breed. It is not at all difficult to distinguish a house sparrow from a field sparrow: the house sparrow (male) has a dark gray cap on the crown of the head, and brown for the field sparrow; the house sparrow has one light strip on its wings, and the field sparrow has two. In addition, the field sparrow has black brackets on the cheeks on a light background, and there is a white collar around the neck. By physique, the house sparrow is coarser than the field sparrow and larger than it. The house sparrow is also called the city sparrow, because it is especially numerous in urban settlements and is common even in the largest cities. field sparrow was called rustic for its commitment to the countryside.

Garifullina Gulia "Bullfinches" A bullfinch is larger than a sparrow. It has bright plumage: red on the chest and gray-bluish on the back. Females are similar in appearance to males, but differ in more modest gray plumage. Bullfinches of both sexes have a black cap on the crown of the head and a thick short black beak. Homeland bullfinches coniferous forests of the northern taiga. Here they make nests and hatch chicks. In September, bullfinches form flocks, and in October they migrate to wintering in the forests of the middle zone of our country. At this time, they appear in villages and cities, standing out sharply against the background of the fallen snow. Hence, probably, the name of these birds bullfinches. In winter, bullfinches keep mixed and deciduous forests, where they feed on the seeds of alder, ash, maple, linden, hornbeam and other trees, as well as shrubs (lilac, etc.). In gardens and parks, they eat tree buds, and on the outskirts of fields they look for seeds of quinoa, horse sorrel and other weeds in ravines and wastelands. Bullfinches are especially attracted to mountain ash, which they willingly eat. During feeding, they leave traces of their work in the form of opened ash and maple fly, the remains of linden seeds, the pulp of crushed rowan berries, etc. It is easy to recognize from these remains that bullfinches “hosted” here.

Nikonorova Azalea "Pigeons" The largest of our pigeons is the wood dove. It is also easy to distinguish by well-marked white spots on the neck and wings. Noble bluish plumage with a light smoky coating. Vakhiri arrive at the end of March, and from mid-April their mating sounds are constantly heard - a dull buzz that vibrates in an early rhythm. At the same time, one can see the current flights of pigeons: a sudden, noisy take-off with a noisy flapping of wings and subsequent smooth gliding. The nest, a loose flat floor of twigs, is built on the side branches of trees and is extremely careless. A clutch of two pure white eggs is incubated for days. Three weeks later, the chicks leave the nest, and the birds move from the forests to the fields, gathering in large flocks in autumn. Flying out in October. In the reserve, the dove is the most common pigeon. The wedge is much smaller than the dove and without any white markings whatsoever. The vakhirya arrives earlier - the current voice of the klintukh has been heard since the beginning of April. It nests in hollows of trees, sometimes at a considerable height. It occurs regularly in the reserve, preferring ripe pine forests.

Riddles about birds With a greenish back, A yellowish tummy, A black hat And a strip of a scarf. (Titmouse) Here is a bird, so a bird, Not a thrush, not a titmouse, Not a swan, not a duck And not a nightjar. But this little bird, though small, Breeds chicks Only in fierce winter. (Klest) Red-breasted, black-winged, Loves to peck grains, With the first snow on the mountain ash, He will appear again. (Bullfinch) A small bird has legs but can't walk. Wants to take a step - It turns out a jump. (Sparrow)

The class of birds includes animals whose body is covered with feathers. They reproduce by laying eggs. The entire evolution of birds from ancient reptiles that lived at the very beginning of the Mesozoic, more than 100 million years ago, to our time, followed the path of better mastering the air environment, improving the flight of the most full use feed available in nature. The forelimbs of birds are turned into wings with very well developed flight feathers, which significantly increase the working surface of the wing and provide soaring in the air, which is also facilitated by tail tail feathers, which determine the high maneuverability of birds in flight. The tubular bones of our birds are devoid of bone marrow, the bones of the skull are fused into a single, lightest structure. If the skeleton of mammals has a weight of about 20% of the total body weight, then in birds it is from 8 to 15%. The shape of the bones and the distribution of bone tissue in certain bones of the skeleton from the point of view of modern technology gives the greatest strength at least cost material.
Very important functions are performed by air sacs located between the internal organs of the bird. When exhaling, when the used air is pushed out, clean, oxygen-rich air enters the lungs from the air sacs. This ensures the “second wind”, which is typical only for birds. In addition, air bags serve as pneumatic cushions for internal organs when landing and jumping, it contributes to oviposition, the passage of the act of defecation, some birds, with the rapid filling of abdominal air sacs, are able to throw excrement at a distance of several meters. The stomach in most birds is divided into two sections - glandular, representing an excellent chemical laboratory with a number of pepsinogenic fields, and muscular - (with a well-defined cuticle and pebbles, sand or hard seeds usually present in it. The muscular stomach is able to develop efforts, several times the weight of the body. Such an energetic work of the digestive organs is associated with a high body temperature of birds, reaching 45 ° C, their high mobility and significant energy expenditure, which require rapid replenishment. Birds have excellent vision. Their eyes are relatively larger than those of mammals, and have a special comb inside that provides heating for the large eye and intraocular pressure.A small kestrel falcon sees a vole at a distance of several hundred meters, Hearing is relatively well developed in birds, especially in owls, but very poorly - smell and touch.
A variety in the arrangement of beaks and great mobility allowed the birds to get a wide variety of food. Thus, the chisel-shaped beak of a woodpecker is adapted for pulling out insects living in bark and wood; crossbill beak - for picking seeds from cones of pine, spruce and larch; long woodcock beak - for extracting earthworms and other inhabitants of the soil layer from the soil; the eagle's beak is for holding and tearing food. All this testifies to the high specialization of birds in obtaining food.
Indeed, among the birds there is a large group of insectivores; finches, chickens, pigeons and others have mastered various plant foods; a number of species lead a predatory lifestyle, feeding mainly on warm-blooded animals; others have adapted to catching fish, etc. There is a wide variety of life forms among birds. Some species live only in forests; others - in the fields and steppes; others inhabit the coasts of rivers and lakes and are closely connected with the aquatic environment; the fourth adapted to life around a person, etc.
The importance of birds in the life of biogeocenoses and in the national economy is great. Ducks, dives, geese, black grouse, hazel grouses, pigeons, coots, many waders provide tasty, vitamin-rich meat. The role of birds in the destruction of harmful insects is great. Suffice it to say that a pair of starlings during the period of raising chicks destroys about 6 kg of insects, among which pests such as May beetles, caterpillars of cabbage butterflies, moths, scoops and others occupy a significant place. Many predator birds they eat harmful rodents in large numbers, providing significant assistance to our agriculture and forestry.
However, speaking about the positive role of birds in the human economy, a number of negative features should also be noted. Some species of birds are involved in the maintenance and spread of dangerous vector-borne diseases and during flights, apparently, are able to carry them over a long distance. Finally, sparrows, gathering in large autumn flocks, in some places harm field crops.
All this indicates that the study of birds and the clarification of their role in the life of biogeocenoses and in the human economy is a big and very important matter. The bird fauna of Tatarstan is rich and varied, studies show that 274 species can be found on the territory of Tatarstan. Most of the birds belong to migratory birds that appear in our country in spring and fly away in autumn;
some come to us only for the winter. The table below characterizes the structure of the bird fauna of our republic and other areas of the middle zone of the European part of the Union. It should also be noted that not every year and often single specimens appear in our Tatarstan such rare-flying birds as the ptarmigan, bustard, skua, shelduck, eider, cormorant, pelican, loaf flamingo, etc. Let us dwell on the characteristics of the most interesting in the economic or biological relation of bird species.

Squad chicken

This order includes 6 species. Four of them - black grouse, capercaillie, hazel grouse and gray partridge - live with us throughout the year, quail flies to tropical Africa for the winter, and white partridge only occasionally appears in Tataria during its winter migrations. So, according to Prof. V. A. Cherdyntsev, in the winter of 1944, several white partridges were killed near the city of Chistopol. All chickens, having good meat, are objects of hunting.

It occurs everywhere in Tatarstan, adhering to trees and shrubs, but often feeds in the fields. This is one of the most beautiful birds. Black with a bluish tint, the male has bright red eyebrows and a lyre-shaped tail. The female wears a more modest outfit, where black-brown mottles are scattered over a reddish background. This coloring perfectly mimics with the litter, makes the bird hardly noticeable and saves from numerous enemies during the incubation and brood period. From February, as soon as the sun begins to warm, flocks of grouse break. Kosach separated from females sit for a long time on the tops of trees, as if absorbing the first solar heat. With the appearance of thawed patches on hillocks and clearings, almost simultaneously with the arrival of rooks, black grouse begin their current song. Their muttering, reminiscent of the murmur of a spring stream, can be heard on quiet, clear mornings for 2-3 km. Having chosen a meadow, a clearing, or a forest edge for a lek, kosachs, if they are not disturbed by a person, lek in the same place for decades.
The east will turn a little pale, as the most gambling mowers begin to flock to the current. Spreading their wings, raising their lyre-shaped tail with a bright white undertail and lowering their heads somewhat with coral eyebrows swollen at that time, chufy and muttering, the males enter into fights among themselves. A little later, black grouse arrive, and their clucking excites the males even more.
Mating sometimes occurs on the current, but more often the grouse with the chosen one fly off into the forest or shrub thicket. Large currents are now rare, usually current is 2-5 braids, very rarely 10 or more.
The grouse nest, like all our chickens, arranges on the ground, covering it with moss, grass and its own fluff. The clutch, consisting of 6-9 eggs, ends most often by mid-May. On the 21st day of incubation, the grouse hatch, partly already feathered, and after 10 days they already fly well. Juveniles are mimicking female.
The grouse zealously guards the brood and, at the risk to itself, leads the enemy away, pretending to be wounded, hobbling and flitting, and when it takes a person, dog, fox or wolf 100-200 meters away, it rises to the edge, makes a wide circle and returns to the hidden brood. Young grow quickly, and in August, black feathers already begin to appear in males.
Kosachi do not take any part in the incubation and upbringing of young animals. After the end of the current, usually in early June, they climb into blind supports, where they spend the entire molting period. Quite often in the fall, kosachi, as if preparing for the spring current, try to lek. In September, black grouse gather in flocks and at this time they often fly to feed on the fields.
Four periods can be distinguished in the nutrition of black grouse. The first is the period of education of the young, when caterpillars, beetles, and orthopterans serve as the main food. The second period of nutrition - "summer" - is characterized by the predominance of berries. In autumn, grass seeds, winter crops and grains are of great importance. In winter, they feed on birch and alder catkins, rose hips, euonymus and juniper. The presence of birch and alder forests - necessary condition for the winter habitat of black grouse. In severe frosts, one can observe how black grouse from a tree rush into loose snow, break through a trench, and in such snow shelters, where it is warm and calm, they spend cold and long winter nights. In the black grouse, hazel grouse and capercaillie, by winter, horny bristles grow on the fingers, significantly increasing the surface of the paws. This makes it easier for the birds to move through the snow and especially through icy slippery tree branches, where they get their main winter food.
In winter, black grouse are hunted with stuffed animals, which are displayed on single trees so that they can be seen from afar. A hut is made nearby, where the hunter hides and shoots the birds flying up to the stuffed animals. In autumn they beat black grouse with a gun dog or just from the approach.

Squad of seagulls

This order in the fauna of Tatarstan includes 12 species, of which 8 nest, and 4 species are found only on migration and during summer migrations of immature birds.
Representatives of the order of gulls are quite clearly divided into four groups:
1) the gulls themselves with their characteristic silvery-white color and rounded tail - klusha, gulls: silver, gray, common and small;
2) river terns, which differ from the previous group in a strongly carved tail, sharper wings and a black cap on the head - river and small tern; 3) marsh terns - the smallest representatives of the order, usually weighing less than 70 g, whose body color is dominated by black - black, white-winged and barnacle terns; 4) Skuas that rarely fly to us - medium and short-tailed, easily distinguished by dark plumage and elongated middle tail feathers extending beyond the tail in the form of a spire. In July 1948, G.P. Priezzhev observed a pair of skuas near Yelabuga for five days; later we met skuas several times in the mouth section of the Kama in 1956 1960, 1969.
All gulls belong to brood birds and lay three rather large brownish-green eggs with scattered dark spots. They are monogamous, and both parents take part in incubating the eggs and feeding the chicks.
In connection with the formation of the reservoir, the number of large gulls - herring and gray gulls, which are now regularly encountered throughout the growing season, has noticeably increased. They are mostly young immature birds aged one to two years, but there are also nesting specimens.
Common gull, lake
In the first days of April, when the edges of the lakes appear and small steppe rivers open up, steamer gulls fly to us, or, as they are also called by the Volgars, “Martyns”. These gulls often accompany steamships and are excellent at catching pieces of bread thrown by them. Undoubtedly, the Volga without gulls would lose some of its beauty.
The first seagulls can be found on the distant Kaban, where the warm waters of KazGRES flow down and where the ice melts first of all. By the end of May or the beginning of June, seagulls gather in large societies and start nesting.
With the formation of the reservoir and the flooding of most of the lakes and swamps, where the black-headed gulls used to nest, their numbers have declined. Apparently, this is also due to the fact that now the nesting sites of gulls are located on the reservoirs of the continental terrace, they are more often visited and often ruined by humans. During autumn counting, we quite often counted in flocks only 5-6% of young, easily distinguished from adults by their motley outfit and the absence of a black helmet on their heads, although based on theoretical calculations, young in the autumn herd should be more than 50%.

In spring, fish, frogs, and mouse-like rodents that died in winter, which gulls get from flooded manes and during their spring migrations, are of great importance in the diet of gulls. Often in spring, seagulls feed “behind the plow” and destroy a large number of “wireworms” and other insects. In summer, seagulls feed mainly on aquatic and terrestrial insects, as well as fish. During the haymaking period, a huge number of orthoptera are eaten. At the end of summer and autumn, the importance of fish in the diet of gulls increases. There is no doubt that in our conditions the common gull is a useful bird and needs to be protected. Seagulls fly away in October. Many of them winter in the Caspian and Black Seas, but some fly as far as the Mediterranean. The little gull, which is distinguished by its smaller size and black plumage of its head, is found much less frequently in Tataria.

Common tern

River tern is a typical inhabitant of large rivers, where it nests in noisy colonies on sandy islands, spits and shallows. Arrives to us late, in mid-May, and starts nesting in June, when the sands appear. In years when the spring hollow waters did not leave for a long time, terns nested on high ridges, arranging their nests on drifts, apparently reminiscent of sandbanks. At present, small colonies of 10-15 nests are common.
Terns feed on a variety of aquatic small animals, including small fish. During haymaking, they switch to feeding on terrestrial insects. In early September, they already migrate south for wintering in the Mediterranean.
It is very similar to the small river tern, weighing only about 50 g - more than two times lighter than the river tern. Appears with us at the end of May - beginning of June, and in August it flies away.

Order of Anseriformes

The vast order of anseriformes includes birds ranging in size from teal to swan, with a stocky body, short legs, three front fingers of which are connected by swimming membranes, with a relatively long neck and a wide, relatively soft (except for mergansers) beak. Its edges are covered with teeth or thin plates, for which the Anseriformes are also called lamellar-beaked. All anseriformes are closely connected with water and belong to the group of waterfowl.
Most of them belong to polygamous species, do not form a permanent family, and males mate with different females. In these species, males are much brighter than females; for example, mallard, shoveler, pintail, etc. In species that pair up and belong to monogamous species, the color is the same for both males and females - for example, swans and geese. All anseriformes are brood birds. Most species feed on plant foods, have a powerful muscular stomach, in which pebbles, sand or hard pondweed seeds are always found, contributing to the grinding of food, very aptly named by prof. P. A. Manteifel V "millstones". Moulting in all species is rapid, and for some time the birds cannot fly.
All anseriformes have very tasty meat and are important hunting objects. In Tatarstan, the anseriform fauna is very richly represented: 30 species have been recorded here, which is more than half of all species found in the vast territory of the CIS. 12 species constantly nest in our country, two species - whooper swan and white-eyed diver - do not nest annually, 9 occur on migration, and 7 belong to rare-flying species.
Our anseriformes are divided into 5 groups: swans, geese, real ducks, divers and mergansers.

whooper swan

About 30-35 years ago the whooper nested in separate pairs in the floodplain of the Kama. Then, as people developed the floodplain, they stopped staying with us for nesting, and in 1965 V. A. Znamensky again discovered a pair of nesting swans in the Rybnaya Sloboda area. The mute swan flies to us very rarely during spring migrations.

gray goose

The Volga is still bound by an ice cover, patches of browned snow still lie in the fields, and in the forest the breath of spring is very faintly felt and snow is everywhere, as we already have the first schools of noisy geese. The arrival of geese, according to long-term data, usually begins around April 14, when the first temporary reservoirs appear in the fields - “Snowfields”. Many folk signs are associated with the arrival of geese: “If the geese fly high - spring ones will be high, they fly low - and spring low”, “Geese scream a lot - for the harvest”, etc.
The bulk of the geese only fly through our republic: numerous bean gooses with a black beak with a yellow or orange belt, a white-fronted goose, a white-fronted pussycat and different kinds goose, characterized by a completely black small beak and black legs. Only a very small part of those flying through Tataria gray geese it remains to nest on the reservoir and in the floodplains of our large rivers on hard-to-reach lakes and swamps. Geese start nesting in May. The female, together with the male, arranges a cozy nest somewhere on the shore, which is lined with feathers and down, and lays 5-8 eggs. Incubates for 28 days mainly goose; The male sits on the nest only when the female is feeding. Geese feed on various aquatic vegetation, like to pluck winter, in autumn they regularly fly to the fields to feed on grains of cereals and peas. In connection with the massive autumn plowing, geese are now less and less likely to land on the fields, the autumn migration takes place in a shorter time.
We get few geese: hunting with a decoy goose and profiles, successfully carried out by S. A. Postnikov, has not yet found wide application. Geese fly away for wintering mainly to the South Caspian.

Order of birds of prey

As the name itself shows, this detachment unites birds leading a predatory lifestyle. All of them have a powerful beak, curved at the end, the base of which is covered with bare skin - "V" "cere"; strong paws, equipped with sharp and curved claws, and rather dense plumage.
Due to the fact that birds of prey eat animal food, they have a poorly developed muscular stomach and have developed the ability to regurgitate undigested food residues through their mouths - bones and hair of mammals, bird feathers, fish scales and chitinous parts of insects, which are called pellets. The collection and analysis of pellets makes it possible to find out the food objects of birds of prey and to establish their role and importance in our economy. Most predatory species have a goiter, which allows them to eat a significant amount of food at the same time, and then, slowly digesting it, go without food for some time. Birds of prey live in monogamy, forming pairs, which often last for a number of years. Large species of predators lay 1–2 eggs and incubate them for about 50 days; medium and small ones carry up to 9 eggs and incubate for less than a month. Incubation begins immediately after the laying of the first egg, so the chicks do not hatch at the same time. This is of great biological importance, since it makes it easier for parents to feed chicks, which lasts about 25 days for small species, and up to three months for large ones. In a number of species of birds of prey, females are much larger than males.
Birds of prey have amazing visual acuity. Prof. G. P. Dementyev writes that the peregrine falcon sees a sitting dove at a distance of 1000 meters. The importance of birds of prey in the human economy is essential. Many of them, destroying a lot of harmful rodents and insects, are of great benefit to agriculture and forestry - these are almost all harriers, small falcons and buzzards. Large predators - golden eagle, white-tailed eagle, spotted eagle and imperial eagle, as well as goshawk and marsh harrier - although they eat a certain number of hunting and game animals - hares, chicken and waterfowl, but their harm is negligible because first of all they catch sick and weakened animals.
The fauna of birds of prey in Tatarstan is very rich. We have noted 28 species, of which 21 species nest on the territory of Tatarstan, one species, the upland buzzard, or Rough-legged Rough-legged Rough-legged Rough-legged Rough-legged Rough-legged Buzzard, is found annually and in fairly large numbers on migration, and 6 species belong to rare-flying ones - tuvik, red kite, white-headed vulture, black vulture, steppe eagle and pygmy eagle. Most diurnal birds of prey are migratory, and only four species are sedentary: both species of hawks, peregrine falcon and golden eagle. According to A. V. Popov, a pair of white-tailed eagles has been wintering in the Saralovsky section of the Volga-Kama Reserve for four years. This is apparently due to the widespread development of ice fishing, when fishermen throw infected liguls, bream and other fish on the ice and thus provide the eagles with food.
For a number of years, employees of the Volga-Kama branch of the VNIO conducted counts of birds of prey during summer field work. Systematically, the birds of prey of Tataria are grouped into two families; falcons and hawks. The first includes six species that have a prong on the beak and a corresponding notch in the mandible; all other predators belong to the second family - they are characterized by the absence of a tooth on the beak.

Falcon-Peregrine Falcon

This is one of the largest falcons we meet, and the only one that sometimes stays over the winter. The falcon "takes" birds exclusively on the fly: having risen above the pursued victim, the peregrine falcon with tremendous speed, reaching 75 meters per second, beats the bird with the claws of the hind toes, folded and tightly pressed to the body. The blow is made on a tangent m is very strong. Prof. G.P. Dementiev writes that if a duck has a blow on the neck, then “its head often flies off”. Sometimes the peregrine falcon does not have time to grab the downed bird, and it falls to the ground, where the predator also descends after it. Ducks are the usual prey of the peregrine falcon, but in the cities it feeds on pigeons and jackdaws, often causing havoc in pigeon flocks and greatly annoying pigeon breeders.
In the center of Kazan, on the bell tower of the Church of the Epiphany, a pair of peregrine falcons lived for a number of years and successfully bred chicks; but now, about 10 years ago, the birds left this area, apparently. due to the fact that in some years it was occupied by a pair of crows More or less constantly peregrine falcons nest in the Raifa forest, where A. A. Pershakov made a number of interesting observations for the way of life of this relatively rare falcon in our country. In the Saralovsky section of the Volga-Kama Reserve, another large falcon, the saker falcon, has been living and successfully breeding chicks for several years.
Goshawk nests in tall forests. Both nests found by us were located on tall fir trees 10–12 m from the ground on thick side branches. The female usually lays 3-4 greenish-white eggs, which she incubates for about 35 days. At the end of July, the young already completely abandon the nest and begin an independent life.
The color of the goshawk is very characteristic of hawks: it is smoky gray from above, and transverse black stripes stretch along a white background from below. Short wide wings a long tail provide the hawk with good maneuverability in the forest. The male usually weighs about 800 g and the female up to 1700 g.
Sparrowhawk in its lifestyle and coloration is extremely close to the goshawk. The food of this small jackdaw-sized predator is dominated by smaller birds, mainly passerines; he regularly eats mouse-like rodents and large insects. As a number of special studies have shown, in natural conditions the hawk, selecting sick and weakened animals, "cleanses" the livestock and helps to maintain its high numbers. Only in poultry farms is it capable of causing some damage, and there we can shoot them.

Marsh harrier

Low above the thickets of emersed vegetation, over lakes and marshes, the marsh harrier, which seems almost black from a distance, flies. It feeds on eggs and chicks, and attacks adult birds. Ducks and coots are especially affected by it. We observed one Marsh Harrier's nest, located on a raft, among impassable thickets of reeds, with four chicks. Within eight days, the parents brought them 9 coots, 2 gray coots, 3 water voles and many small rodents and birds. S. V. Utyakovsky says that he observed the attack of a marsh harrier on a muskrat.
The number of marsh harriers is now small, and the loss they cause is negligible compared to the positive role in the improvement of livestock.

This is the most common bird of prey in our republic. The carved tail of the kite is an excellent sign of the species, by which it is easy to distinguish it from all other predators, which is helped a lot by the characteristic cry, vaguely reminiscent of the neighing of a stallion.
Kites appear with us in mid or early April and almost immediately concentrate near their nesting sites. They often nest in colonies of 3-6 nests on an area of ​​200-500 hectares - on some forest island, in a forest split near a large lake, or choose a forest edge along the Volga and Kama slopes. It should be noted that they live in groups in a relatively small area only in years rich in food. More often, we found solitary nests, which were arranged in trees and lined with the most diverse material; washcloth, rags, pieces of paper, cotton wool, etc. In one nest, located not far from the camp of our expedition, we found our own notes, lost in one of the trips around the island.
There are usually 2-3 eggs in the nest. Incubation and feeding of chicks takes about two and a half months. By August, the young are difficult to distinguish from adults and are already leading an independent life. At this time, kites are especially often found near settlements and marinas.
Kites feed on a wide variety of food: large insects, mollusks, mouse-like rodents, fish, frogs and lizards, small birds and carrion. Occasionally they attack chickens, flying into villages and even larger settlements. In the second half of summer and autumn, two or three dozen birds accumulate near the cattle burial grounds and in other areas rich in food.

Owl squad

This detachment unites - birds leading night image life, having large, forward-facing eyes, from which small feathers radiate in all directions, forming a facial disk characteristic of the detachment. The head is large and, as it were, merged with the body, but, despite this, it is very mobile - owls can turn their heads 180°. Although owls are typical nocturnal birds, they can see quite well during the day. During the feeding period of young Short-eared Owls sometimes hunt even during the day. The plumage of owls is loose, soft and contributes to the silent flight of these predators. Their hearing is well developed. The ear holes are very large and in some species are surrounded by longer feathers, forming, as it were, the outer ear. Most owls have a mimic variegated coloration, where small speckles are scattered over a reddish-gray background. Females are usually larger than males.
Like diurnal predators, owls have a hook-shaped beak and well-developed claws, and the outer finger can turn back - this makes it easier to grasp prey. Food consists of various warm-blooded animals, among which) rodents - voles and mice predominate. Owls discard indigestible food residues in the form of pellets, which differ from those of diurnal predators in their rounded shape.
Owl nests are very primitive, and some species lay their eggs simply on the ground or in hollows; long-eared owls often occupy crow nests. The female incubates. Immediately after the first egg is laid, the female sits on the nest, and therefore the chicks do not hatch at the same time, which greatly facilitates their feeding.
In the fauna of Tatarstan, owls are represented by 12 species. The Eagle Owl, the Great Owl, the Hawk Owl and some Owls lead a settled way of life, while the Snowy Owl and the Great Tawny Owl appear in our country only in some years in winter. All owls are undoubtedly useful birds, and if occasionally they catch game animals and birds, then this is more than compensated by the large number of mice and voles they have killed.

The largest representative of the detachment, whose weight reaches 3 kg. On the territory of Tatarstan it is found everywhere, but its favorite habitat is the wilderness. At present, the eagle owl is relatively rare, but nevertheless, in spring, in all large forests of the republic, one can hear at night its dull cry “uhu-uhuV”, sometimes turning into a very unpleasant sound, reminiscent of the cry of a person or the cry of a child. This, apparently, was the reason for the creation of beliefs among the people, according to which the eagle owl portends trouble. Often, even in our time, the cry of an owl is identified with the laughter of the "goblin".
The food of the eagle owl is very diverse and depends on the amount of one or another food in nature. According to the materials of T. M. Kulaeva, the main food of the eagle owl is mouse-like rodents. So, in the stomach of an eagle owl, obtained in February 1946 by Ya. P. Koksin, the remains of 40 voles and mice were found. There is no doubt that rodents form the basis of his food, but when they are scarce, the eagle owl is able to take hares, catch black grouse, partridges, rooks, jackdaws, crows and jays, and even dare to attack foxes. So, in one of the forest ravines near Matyushin, an owl was killed at the time of its attack on a fox.
The eagle owl does not arrange nests, but lays 2–3 white, almost spherical eggs, which are characteristic of all owls, right on the ground.
The eagle owl undoubtedly needs protection, and hunters should remember that if he destroys a certain number of hares, black grouse and other useful animals, then first of all he takes sick and weakened ones and this is of great benefit, clearing the livestock and to some extent preventing disease outbreak.

long-eared owl

One of the most common owls we have. It inhabits forests of various ages and compositions and is often found even in close proximity to the city, and, possibly, also nests in the Arsky cemetery of Kazan, where we repeatedly heard its two-syllable cry “hoo-hoo”. The size of the long-eared owl is significantly inferior to the eagle owl: all the owls we caught weighed less than 500 g. It differs from other owls by two protruding tufts of feathers on its head, resembling ears. In addition, long-eared owls have long wings that, when folded, go beyond the end of the tail.
In years rich in mouse-like rodents, long-eared owls live settled with us, not flying away for the winter; in years, poor in rodents, migrate to the south, reaching Africa. They start nesting in April. The number of eggs in a clutch depends on the availability of food for birds and ranges from 3 to 8. Usually, the long-eared owl occupies the nests of crows, magpies and jays: all 4 nests of the long-eared owl we found previously belonged to ravens. I. V. Zharkov and V. P. Teplov described three owl nests, of which two were built by crows and one by a magpie.
Incubation begins immediately after the first egg is laid. The female incubates, but the male usually stays close to the nest. With large clutches, the difference in the size of the chicks can be very large; so, for example, in one inspected nest, the largest chick weighed 242 g, and the smallest - only 87 g. It is quite natural that all chicks rarely survive - in the years of large "harvests" of rodents. Usually, 1-2 "last ones die, since the food brought by their parents is captured by larger chicks, who are even able to kill their little "brothers and sisters" themselves and eat them. Such a "screening out" of chicks is a common occurrence for all our predators.

Detachment long-winged

As the very name of the detachment shows, it includes birds with long wings, somewhat reminiscent of swallows, but even more adapted to flight. We meet one species from this order - black swift, or common.
Saber-shaped curved wings, as if a flattened head with a beak split like a nightjar, short and weak legs with a feathered metatarsus and trailing fingers pointing forward and serving only to hold on walls, cornices and tree trunks, are good signs of a swift. The swift does not know how to walk at all and, having hit the ground, with great difficulty rises to the wing. His element is air, where he has no rivals both in speed and in flight maneuverability. It feeds exclusively on insects, which it catches on the fly. Mating in swifts also occurs in the air.
Swifts appear with almost calendar accuracy around May 14, and their swift flight with a piercing cry of “swifts” marks the onset of the last phase of spring. Swifts are found in large numbers in Kazan and other settlements where they nest under eaves, in cracks in walls and in attics. In some places they are numerous in tall hollow forests. For two years in a row, near the laboratory station in the Raifa section of the reserve, a pair of swifts nested in a birdhouse hung on a birch at a height of only about 6 meters.
Two strongly elongated, almost cylindrical, white eggs are incubated by the female, which at this time is carefully fed by the male. Before bad weather, swifts fly low, which is associated with the migration of insects that are very sensitive to changing weather conditions; thus, observing swifts, it is often possible to predict changes in the weather. For wintering, swifts fly away in early September to Equatorial Africa.

Order of passerines

The order of passerines, which is the richest in terms of the number of species, is represented in Tatarstan by 103 species, which is 37.2% of the species composition of birds in Tatarstan. Undoubtedly, the order of passerines has no competitors in terms of the number of individuals. Most of our small birds belong to this order and are found in great numbers. Thus, up to 400 pairs of birds nest on 25 hectares of mixed deciduous forest. The appearance of birds belonging to the order of passerines is very diverse. Along with the raven, reaching a weight of up to 1500 g, the order of passerines also includes the wren, whose weight does not exceed 8 g.
Passerines have “stepped” legs, four fingers of which are located in the same plane: three of them look forward, one looks back. The wing has 10-12 flight feathers, the tail consists of 12, less often 10-16 tail feathers. All passerines belong to chicks. The planting period for small species lasts 12-14 days. For about the same period, the chicks are fed by their parents in the nest. In large passerines, the periods of incubation and stay of chicks in the nest are longer.
Most of the species of this order fly away to warmer climes for the winter, and in the spring they return to their homeland again, where they nest. Some species are found here all year round, making only minor migrations. Most small passerines feed on insects - if not all year round, then during the feeding of chicks. Many eat weed seeds. Passerines are mostly useful birds that help people fight pests in agriculture and forestry.

Bird family larks

The characteristic external features of the representatives of this family include the rounded back surface of the metatarsus, covered with scutes, and the long sharp claw of the hind toe.

field lark

Modestly colored, with grayish-brown speckles and a low wide tuft, the field bird is well known to everyone who visits the fields in spring and summer. Arrives to us very early - as soon as thawed patches appear in some places, and his ringing song is heard already at the end of March. The mass flight takes place in the first half of April, and then the singing of the lark coming from above can be heard even when walking through noisy streets. big city. Pairs start breeding when the fields freed from snow turn green. The clutch contains 4-6 eggs.
A simple nest is arranged on the ground. Chicks develop quickly and leave the nest 9-10 days after hatching. During the summer, larks usually have two broods. They feed their chicks with insects. The rest of the time, larks mainly feed on various grass and cereal seeds picked up on the ground. By autumn, they gather in flocks and roam the fields and meadows before flying for the winter.

Forest lark, or spinning top

It differs from the field lark in its smaller size, light yellowish eyebrow and shorter tail. The song of the forest lark can be conveyed by the words Yuli-Yuli-YuliV. Yula has a clear attraction to the forest, and its habitats are forest clearings, clearings, pine woodlands, especially moorlands on sandy hillocks.

Horned lark

It got its name for the original B black "horns" of feathers on the sides of the head and it cannot be confused with any other bird. Flocks of these rather brightly and colorfully colored birds, slightly smaller than a starling, can be found during their spring and autumn migration, but they do not nest here.
Crested lark can be attributed to the number of stray species. These birds could be observed several times in the vicinity of Kazan.

Grade 2 MBOU "Secondary school with. Nizhnyaya Rus"

Presentation about some wintering birds of our region

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Wintering birds of Tatarstan

Solovyov Anton: “How do birds winter?” In winter, our neighbor birds try to stay close to human habitation: it is warmer and more satisfying here. Fed up and frost is not so terrible. A good dinner warms you from the inside, heat goes through your whole body. If you do not lose weight over the winter and keep the fat under the skin, then even the severe cold that passes through the feather is not dangerous either: it cannot freeze the fatty lining. But the trouble is, in winter it is not easy to find food. It is difficult for those birds that ate insects in the summer, they switch to cones, nuts and grains. And this food is still to be found. Difficult times are easier to get through together. And in winter, different birds gather in flocks. After all, how is it in a pack? I found one food, immediately notified everyone: everyone will be full. Danger is easier to notice in time - there is always someone on guard while others are feeding or dozing. If you need to fight off a large predator, then here it’s more convenient for everyone together. So it’s impossible for a little bird to be alone in winter. Even those of the birds that usually live alone, and then for the winter they are nailed to some flock.

Semenov Daniil: "Nututatch and woodpecker" In the park, garden, near the feeders in a flock of different tits, you can see the nuthatch. This small short-tailed bird immediately attracts attention with its ability to quickly run upside down on a tree trunk. Among the birds, the best climbers crawl. They are helped in this by a special arrangement of paws with very long fingers and claws. All the warm season, these birds run through the trees, looking for insect pests. In winter, they have to sit on a plant-based diet. A piece of unsalted fat in a feeder or a nuthatch bug turned up in the bark is a delicacy. The color of the bird is bluish-gray, the neck, chest and abdomen are white, a black stripe comes from the beak. The woodpecker is a noticeable bird. His back, wings, tail are black, as if he was wearing a black tailcoat. The throat, chest, abdomen are white, and on the head there is a bright red cap. It sits on a tree trunk, clutching the bark with its claws, and also leans on its tail. The woodpecker's tail is unusual: with pointed ends, very hard feathers. Resting its tail against the unevenness of the bark, the woodpecker holds firmly on a sheer trunk. Such strength, he needs to hit a tree hard. After all, the woodpecker feeds on worms, beetles and other insects that spoil the tree, gnawing passages deep into the trunk.

Bikbova Ilsina: “Tits” Titmouse are one of the most useful birds for humans, because they destroy many pests. In the spring, when they have a baby, they can eat as many insects per day as they themselves weigh. These birds are nomadic, but they do not fly for long distances, only for short ones - from the northern edges they can move to the southern ones. “There are several types of titmouse, and they are all useful. The more of these birds, the better. They need to be attracted with feeders. In spring and summer, tits feed only on insects, while in winter and autumn they eat berries and grain. So that the wind does not blow away their food, you can make a ball from lard (unsalted) and “glue” raw sunflower seeds, oats, millet, and flax to it. This food can be hung on a tree or near a window. Titmouse also relishes unsalted lard.

Egorova Liana "Sparrows" Sparrows of two types live in the middle zone of the European part of Russia: house (city) and field (village). They are found together in mixed flocks, especially in late autumn and winter. In spring and summer, individuals of each species stick to their favorite habitats, where they build nests and breed. It is not at all difficult to distinguish a house sparrow from a field sparrow: a house sparrow (male) has a dark gray cap on the crown of its head, and a brown one for a field sparrow; the house sparrow has one light strip on its wings, and the field sparrow has two. In addition, the field sparrow has black brackets on the cheeks on a light background, and there is a white collar around the neck. By physique, the house sparrow is coarser than the field sparrow and larger than it. The house sparrow is also called the city sparrow, because it is especially numerous in urban settlements and is common even in the largest cities. The tree sparrow is called the village sparrow because of its attachment to the countryside.

Garifullina Gulia "Bullfinches" A bullfinch is larger than a sparrow. It has bright plumage: red on the chest and gray-bluish on the back. Females are similar in appearance to males, but differ in more modest gray plumage. Bullfinches of both sexes have a black cap on the crown of the head and a thick short black beak. The birthplace of bullfinches is the coniferous forests of the northern taiga. Here they make nests and hatch chicks. In September, bullfinches form flocks, and in October they migrate to wintering in the forests of the middle zone of our country. At this time, they appear in villages and cities, standing out sharply against the background of the fallen snow. Hence, probably, the name of these birds - bullfinches. In winter, bullfinches keep mixed and deciduous forests, where they feed on the seeds of alder, ash, maple, linden, hornbeam and other trees, as well as shrubs (lilac, etc.). In gardens and parks, they eat tree buds, and on the outskirts of fields they look for seeds of quinoa, horse sorrel and other weeds in ravines and wastelands. Bullfinches are especially attracted to mountain ash, which they willingly eat. During feeding, they leave traces of their work in the form of opened ash and maple fly, the remains of linden seeds, the pulp of crushed rowan berries, etc. It is easy to recognize from these remains that bullfinches “hosted” here.

Nikonorova Azalea "Pigeons" The largest of our pigeons is the wood dove. It is also easy to distinguish by well-marked white spots on the neck and wings. Noble bluish plumage with a light smoky coating. Vakhiri arrive at the end of March, and from mid-April their mating sounds are constantly heard - a dull buzz that vibrates in an early rhythm. At the same time, one can see the current flights of pigeons: a sudden, noisy take-off with a noisy flapping of wings and subsequent smooth gliding. The nest, a loose flat floor of twigs, is built on the side branches of trees and is extremely careless. A clutch of two pure white eggs is incubated for 17-18 days. Three weeks later, the chicks leave the nest, and the birds move from the forests to the fields, gathering in large flocks in autumn. Flying out in October. In the reserve, the dove is the most common pigeon. Klintukh is much smaller than the whirlwind and without any white marks whatsoever. The whirlwind arrives earlier - the current voice of the klintukh has been heard since the beginning of April. It nests in hollows of trees, sometimes at a considerable height. It occurs regularly in the reserve, preferring ripe pine forests.

Riddles about birds With a greenish back, A yellowish tummy, A black hat And a strip of a scarf. (Titmouse) Here is a bird, so a bird, Not a thrush, not a titmouse, Not a swan, not a duck And not a nightjar. But this little bird, though small, Breeds chicks Only in fierce winter. (Klest) Red-breasted, black-winged, Loves to peck grains, With the first snow on the mountain ash, He will appear again. (Bullfinch) A small bird has legs but can't walk. Wants to take a step - It turns out a jump. (Sparrow)

Wonderful pictures with migratory and wintering birds. Which birds stay wintering in their homeland, and which ones fly away?

Walking in a park or forest, we listen to the birds singing and often just don’t think about which bird trills so nicely. There are birds that live in our area all year round, but there are also those that fly to "warm lands" in the fall.

The fact is that in winter it is very difficult for birds to find food for themselves, because insects, berries and grains become scarce, and when snow falls, they are almost impossible to find at all. AND different types birds solve this problem in different ways: migratory birds fly hundreds and even thousands of kilometers to warmer countries, and settled ones adapt to our harsh winters.

Titmouse in the snow, which, apparently, wants to feast on seeds

Settled, wintering birds: list, photo with names

Feeders are hung up to help the birds that have stayed over the winter find food. And it is quite possible that they will be of interest to such visitors:

• Sparrow. Noisy sparrows that fly in flocks may well become the first visitors to the feeder.

• Tit. Tits are in many ways not inferior to sparrows, they quickly rush to feed in the feeders. But compared to sparrows, tits are endowed with a more meek disposition. It is interesting that in summer the titmouse eats almost as much food as it weighs itself. Often in the feeders you can observe mixed flocks, consisting of both sparrows and titmouse.

• gaichka. A close relative of the titmouse. However, the breast of the nut is not yellow, but light brown. Also, the tit differs from other tits in that it makes a hollow in a tree to make a nest in it.

Gaitka - a special type of tits

• Crow. Ravens are often confused with rooks. It is known that crows are very rare in the western part of Russia. Therefore, if you live in the European part of Russia and see a black bird making a shrill croak, then most likely you have a rook in front of you.

• Pigeon. The distribution and lifestyle of pigeons was largely influenced by people who simply brought them with them to different parts of the Earth. Now pigeons are found on all continents with the exception of Antarctica. Pigeons easily change the rocks that are their natural habitat for man-made structures.

The nodding gait of pigeons is due to the fact that it is easier for them to see the object of interest to them.

• Woodpecker. In the warm season, woodpeckers feed mainly on insects, which they get from under the bark of trees, and in the winter cold, they can also eat plant foods: seeds and nuts.

• Magpie. Magpie is considered a bird with high intelligence, it is able to express a lot of emotions, including sadness and knows how to recognize its reflection in the mirror. Interestingly, not only its brethren, but also other birds, as well as wild animals, in particular bears and wolves, react to the alarming cry of a magpie.

Magpie - winter bird

• Owl. Owls are different, large and small, in total there are more than 200 species. These birds are endowed with sharp eyesight and excellent hearing, which allows them to lead a nocturnal lifestyle. Interestingly, the tassels on the owl's head are not ears, real owl ears are hidden in feathers, and one of them is directed upwards, and the other downwards, in order to better hear what is happening above the head and on the ground.

Owl - nocturnal bird

• This bird is also considered an owl and is a close relative of other owls.

• A rare owl that lives mainly in mountainous areas in northern latitudes. The name of the bird according to different versions means "inedible" or "insatiable".

• Jackdaw. Outwardly, jackdaws look like rooks and crows, moreover, there are mixed flocks in which you can see all three types of birds. However, the jackdaw is smaller than the crow. And if you are lucky enough to watch a jackdaw up close, you can easily recognize it by the gray color of some of the feathers.

• Nuthatch. This little bird climbs tree trunks very dexterously. In summer, nuthatches hide seeds and nuts in the bark, and in winter they feed on these supplies.

• Crossbill. Like the nuthatch, this bird is an excellent tree climber and can hang upside down on branches. Crossbill's favorite food is seeds from spruce and pine cones. This bird is remarkable in that it can breed chicks even in winter, but only if there is enough food.

• Bullfinch. Only males have bright red plumage on the chest, females look much more modest. Bullfinches are more often seen in winter, because due to lack of food, they are drawn to people. In summer, bullfinches prefer wooded areas and behave inconspicuously, so it is not easy to see them.

• waxwing. A bird with beautiful plumage and a singing voice. In summer it feeds mainly on insects and likes to settle in coniferous forests. In winter, the waxwing moves to the more southern regions of the country; it is often found in cities. In the cold season, mountain ash and other fruits become the main food for birds.

• Jay. large bird, which, however, can fly to feast on a feeder hung by people. In summer, it is rarely seen in the city, but closer to winter, the bird begins to reach for human habitation.

• Wren. One of the smallest birds, the weight of an adult male is only 5-7 grams. Kings are relatives of sparrows.

Wren - an inhabitant of the forests

• . A large bird that is a favorite trophy for many hunters. Pheasants can fly, but more often they move on foot.

• Grouse. It is also an object of hunting, despite the fact that this bird is quite small. The weight of an adult hazel grouse rarely reaches 500 g. It is interesting that the largest population of these birds lives in Russia.

The hazel grouse is a bird that is related to the black grouse

• Another bird that is related to hunting. Grouse are found on the edge of the forest and in the forest-steppe.

• Falcon. It is considered one of the smartest birds on the planet and one of the best hunters. The falcon is able to work in tandem with a man, but it is very difficult to tame him.

• . Like the falcon, it is a bird of prey. A hawk's vision is 8 times sharper than a human's. And rushing for prey, the hawk can reach speeds of up to 240 km / h.

Migratory, nomadic birds: list, photo with names

• Rooks differ from crows in a gray-yellow beak. In the Kuban and Ukraine, you can see how in the fall the rooks gather in huge flocks, so large that the sky seems black from the birds soaring in it - these are rooks that fly south. However, rooks are only conditionally migratory birds, some of them remain to winter in central Russia, some winter in Ukraine, and only some birds fly for the winter to the warm shores of Turkey.

• they love to fly to freshly dug up land, sometimes they fly right behind a plowing tractor in order to have time to get as many worms and larvae from the dug up land as possible.

• This inconspicuous bird with a singing voice loves warmth, and therefore flies south in autumn. And for wintering, our native nightingales have chosen hot Africa. These birds fly to winter in the eastern part of the continent - Kenya and Ethiopia. However, local residents cannot enjoy their singing, because nightingales sing only in mating season which they have in their homeland.

• Martin. Swallows love rocky terrain, they often settle on the sheer walls of quarries that people have dug out. However, our winters are too severe for swallows, and therefore in autumn they fly to the southern, farthest from us, part of Africa or to Tropical Asia.

• Chizh. Like the rook, it is a migratory bird that arrives early and winters nearby: in the Caucasus, Kazakhstan and southern Europe. Outwardly, siskins are inconspicuous, their gray-green feathers are absolutely not striking against the background of branches. The nature of the bird matches the appearance: quiet and meek.

• Goldfinch. In Europe, it is a wintering bird, however, in Russia, goldfinches can only be seen in summer. By winter, goldfinches gather in flocks and go to lands with a warmer climate. Goldfinches are close relatives of siskins.

Goldfinch is one of the most colorful birds

• A slender bird that runs fast on the ground and shakes its tail with every step. Wagtails spend winter in East Africa, southern Asia, and sometimes in southern Europe.

• Quail. The only bird from the order Galliformes, which is migratory. The weight of an adult quail is not so great and is 80-150 g. In summer, quails can be found in fields sown with wheat and rye. Quail winters far beyond the borders of our Motherland: in southern Africa and southern Asia, on the Hindustan peninsula.

• Thrush. The song thrush with its sweet trills creates worthy competition with the nightingale. BUT appearance him, like the nightingale, inconspicuous. In winter, thrushes become Europeans: Italy, France and Spain are their second home.

• lark. Larks return from warm countries very early, sometimes already in March you can hear their sonorous song, which becomes a harbinger of spring warmth. And larks winter in Southern Europe.

• Gull. With the onset of cold weather, gulls living on the coasts of the northern seas migrate to the Black and Caspian Seas. But over the years, seagulls are more and more drawn to people, and more and more often they stay to spend the winter in cities.

• . Swifts winter in Africa, and reach its equatorial part or even go to the southern part of the mainland.

• Starlings are in great need of birdhouses, since most often they breed offspring in them. And our starlings go to winter in Southern Europe and East Africa.

This bizarre black cloud is a flock of starlings returning home

• Finch. Finches from the western part of the country winter mainly in Central Europe and the Mediterranean, and finches that live near the Urals in summer go to South Kazakhstan and southern regions of Asia for wintering.

Finch - a noisy inhabitant of the forest

• Heron. It is rather difficult to determine where the herons winter, some of them travel huge distances to South Africa, some winter in the Crimea or the Kuban, and in the Stavropol Territory, herons sometimes even remain to winter at all.

• Crane. These birds are monogamous, and once having chosen a partner, they remain faithful to him all their lives. Cranes nest in swampy areas. And their wintering places are as diverse as those of herons: Southern Europe, Africa and even China - in all these parts of the world you can meet cranes that have flown from Russia to spend the winter.

• Stork. In Russia there are black and white storks. White storks make huge nests up to one and a half meters wide and make very long flights to the south. Sometimes they overcome half the planet and reach South Africa, a country located in the very south of Africa.

• Swan. The swan is a bird that represents devotion and romance. Swans are waterfowl, so for wintering they choose places near the water, often the Caspian or Mediterranean Sea.

• Duck. Wild ducks in winter, as a rule, do not fly far and remain in the expanses of the post-Soviet states. It is noteworthy that their domestic relatives also begin to worry in the fall and sometimes try to fly away, sometimes they even fly over fences and fly short distances.

• . Cuckoos settle in forests, and in the forest-steppe, and in the steppe. The vast majority of cuckoos fly to winter in tropical and South Africa, less often cuckoos winter in South Asia: in India and China.

• . A small bird with a singing voice and bright plumage that flies to the tropics for the winter.

• . They wake up at dawn and are among the first to start the morning song. Previously, this little songbird was called a robin. Robins fly to winter in Southern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, returning home among the first.

What is the difference between migratory birds and wintering birds: presentation for preschoolers

slide 2

Slide 3: presentation of migratory birds

Why do migratory birds fly to warmer climes where they spend the winter, why do they come back?

Winter is a severe test for birds. And only those who, in harsh conditions, can get food for themselves remain to winter.

What could be the ways for birds to survive in the cold season?

• Some birds store food in the summer for the winter. They hide plant seeds, nuts, acorns, caterpillars and larvae in grass and cracks in tree bark. These birds include the nuthatch.
• Some birds are not afraid of people and live near residential buildings. In winter, they find food in feeders and on garbage heaps.
• Some birds are predators and feed on rodents. There are birds of prey that can feed on hares, hunt fish, small birds and bats.

If a bird can find food for itself in winter, then it does not need to go on a tiring and difficult flight to warmer climes in the fall.

It would seem that everything is simple, and the only reason for the seasonal migration of birds is the lack of food. But in reality there are more questions than answers. For example, imagine that a wild duck, which is a migratory bird, is provided with an artificially heated pond and sufficient food. Will she stay for the winter? Of course not. She will be called on a long journey, a strong feeling that is difficult to explain, called a natural instinct.

It turns out that birds fly away to warmer climes, as if out of habit, because their ancestors did this for hundreds and thousands of years.

Another question to be answered: why do birds return from warm countries every spring? Ornithologists have concluded that the start of the return flight is associated with the activation of sex hormones and the start of the breeding season. But why do birds fly thousands of kilometers and breed chicks exactly where they themselves were born? Poets and romantic natures say that birds, like people, are simply drawn to their homeland.

How do migratory birds know where to fly? A question to which, to this day, there is no intelligible answer. It has been experimentally proven that birds can navigate in a completely unfamiliar area and in conditions of limited visibility, when neither the sun nor the stars are visible. They have an organ that allows them to navigate the Earth's magnetic field.

But the mystery remains how the juveniles, who have never flown to warmer climes before, find their wintering grounds themselves, and how do they know the route to fly? It turns out in birds, at the genetic level, information is recorded about the point on the map where you need to fly, and moreover, a route is drawn to it.

Do migratory birds nest in the south?

Birds wintering in warm regions do not lay eggs and do not incubate chicks, which means they do not need a nest. A nest is needed only for chicks, which migratory birds will incubate in their homeland.

Which birds are the first and last to arrive in spring?

They arrive first in the spring rooks. These birds return to their homeland in early spring, when the first thawed patches appear in the snow. With their strong beak, rooks dig larvae on such thawed patches, which form the basis of their diet.

The last to arrive are birds that feed on flying insects. These are swallows, swifts, orioles. The diet of these birds consists of:

• Komarov
• Moshek
• gadflies
• Zhukov
• cicada
• butterflies

Since the appearance of a large number of adult flying insects from larvae requires warm weather and about two weeks of time, the birds that feed on them also arrive home after the mass appearance of these insects.

Which birds are the first and last to fly away in autumn?

With the onset of autumn cold weather, insects complete their active life cycle and go into hibernation. Therefore, the birds that feed on insects are the first to fly to warm lands. Then the birds that feed on the plants fly away. Waterfowl are the last to leave. For them, even in autumn, there is enough food in the water. And they fly away before the water in the reservoirs begins to freeze.

VIDEO: Birds fly south

A flock of what migratory birds promises snow?

According to popular belief, if a flock of wild geese- expect the first snowfall. This sign may not coincide with real weather phenomena. So in the north of Russia, geese fly to warmer climes in mid-September, and snow can fall much earlier. Let's say the first snow in Norilsk fell on August 25 this year. In the south, geese fly to warmer climes at the end of October, and sometimes even at the beginning of November. The first snow in these areas may fall at this time. But it all depends on the weather conditions in autumn. Indian summer here can drag on for the whole of October.

VIDEO: Geese gather in flocks for flights to the south

Which bird in the order Galliformes is a migratory bird?

A migratory bird from the order Galliformes is quail. The quail's habitat extends beyond Russia in the west and south. In the east, these birds live up to the western coast of Lake Baikal. They are distributed in Europe, Western Asia and Africa.

They fly south for the winter. And they winter in Hindustan, North Africa and Southwest Asia.

VIDEO: How do migratory birds fly?

Tatarstan is famous for its unusually beautiful nature. Many species of animals and birds live on the territory of the republic. Today we offer to find out what birds live in Tatarstan, get acquainted with three species, these are the black goose, dive and black kite. Find out what they look like, their way of life. Let's start with the migratory red-headed pochard.

Arrival time

The beautiful bird is a waterfowl and arrives in Tatarstan in late April and early May. This bird likes to spend winter in warm regions, and overcomes a long way from Africa, the tropics of Asia, Japan, Southern or Western Europe to Tatarstan to build a nest, raise new offspring. It nests near water bodies, it is an object of fishermen and lovers of sport hunting.

Appearance

An adult diver has an average body size of 58 centimeters. In weight, it can reach from 0.7 to 1.1 kilograms. It has a neat short tail, a distinctive feature is the back arched upwards while swimming. The neck of the diver is short, the body is dense. The paws of the bird are located far behind, therefore, when it stands, it leans forward strongly.

The beak of this duck is equal to the length of the head, it is slightly expanded at the base. The plumage of the wings and body has a typical color, a gray-white pattern is clearly visible.

An adult female is quite easy to distinguish from a male. They have different patterns and head color. In the male, it is colored brown-red, and in the female it is yellow-brown.

habitats

These migratory birds of Tatarstan choose the most fertile areas of lakes and artificial reservoirs. The most acceptable places for them are deep reservoirs with abundant vegetation. Walls of high reeds are a favorite place for nesting. The red-headed dive will never settle where there is no plentiful food, an acceptable depth of water.

Brackish water bodies avoid diving. They can be found in swamps, sections of rivers with a calm course, artificially created reservoirs.

Diving behavior

These birds of Tatarstan live in flocks, can settle with other representatives. They are too clumsy when moving on land, so they spend most of their time in the water. Dive and swim dives are excellent. In case of danger, they, unlike other birds, do not take off, but dive under water, and there they wait out an unfavorable time.

During molting, red-headed divers cannot fly, therefore they prefer to spend this period with their relatives at a distance from places where they can become easy prey for predators or humans.

reproduction

Pairs of dives are formed already during the flight. The breeding season lasts from April to the end of June. The male is near the nest, but does not participate in the care and upbringing of offspring.

The nest of the described ducks is not original, it is an ordinary shallow hole in the ground, covered with grass. One female can lay five to twelve eggs. Hatches dive its offspring for an average of 26 days. After being born, ducklings are in the care of their mother for two months, after which they begin an independent life.

Diving - Tatarstan. They are quite interesting to watch while feeding. Ducks dive under water, and can stay there for up to 16 seconds, and emerge elsewhere. They are also very active in shallow water, where they like to splash and fool around.

Black goose: description

It is rare in Tatarstan, but you can still meet this beautiful bird. It belongs to the duck, looks like a goose. This type is the smallest of all goose. The average weight is two kilograms, the body length reaches sixty centimeters. Birds are on the verge of extinction, listed in the Red Book and protected by law, so you can not hunt them. The cause of extinction is dirty water bodies.

These birds in Tatarstan are migratory; tundra and sea coasts are chosen for the main habitat.

The color of the goose is very interesting. Most of her body is covered with gray, brown feathers. The belly and sides are lighter, and the back is dark. The undertail and tail feathers on the wings are white, the neck, beak, head and paws are black. On the neck there is a white uneven stripe resembling a collar.

The black goose prefers wintering in East Asia, in the North-West of Europe and on the coasts of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. These birds reach their wintering grounds only along the coasts.

Goose breeding

These are birds that create permanent pairs. During the breeding season, which begins in June and lasts for three months, they beautifully look after each other. This is a special ritual, consisting in a strange dance, with a constant change of positions.

Black goose nest in groups, which allows them to protect themselves from various predators, such as gulls, arctic foxes and polar bears. A nest is built in the recesses of the earth along reservoirs with good vegetation. The bottom is covered with fluff, soft grass.

The female can lay three to five eggs, incubating them for twenty-four days (on average). The male is always nearby, he takes care of his wife, helps in raising ducklings. Babies are able to leave the nest in a few hours. Parents lead their brood to water bodies, teach them to get food. For six weeks, the couple protects their ducklings, and then the grown-up offspring can leave the shelter on their own, but remain with their parents until other babies appear.

Nutrition

The diet of goose is very diverse. They eat various vegetation, including algae. Sometimes they can also taste "live" food, these are small insects and crustaceans.

The described ducks do not know how to dive, but they are still able to get algae from under the water, bending inward. At this time, the tail, like a float, remains on the surface.

In winter, when there are not very many plants, the goose eats moss, and the basis of the diet is Zoster seaweed.

The birds of Tatarstan impress with their diversity. There are both migratory and permanent residents. A huge number of herbivores, omnivores and predators live on the territory of the republic. We examined two species from the duck family, now we will get acquainted with one of the most beautiful predatory creatures.

black kite

This is a predator of the hawk order, it is very beautiful, and stands out with its color among other species. It leads a migratory lifestyle, chooses dense forests located near water bodies for living. The kite prefers to spend winter in flocks in Australia, Africa and India. There they unite with local representatives of this species.

Black kite - the bird is not black at all, it is more dark brown. The size of the chicken house is average, it grows up to 58 centimeters, and weighs from 0.8 to 1.1 kilograms. The wings reach 50 centimeters, in a span they can be up to 1.5 meters. The main decoration of this bird of Tatarstan is the tail. It is even, reminiscent of a fan, lowered down.

Males are slightly smaller than females in size, their plumage is the same, so it is very difficult to distinguish. The body is decorated with dark brown feathers, the top of the head has a light gray color. The back is darker than the chest and belly, the wings are dark, like the tail. The base of the beak and the bare part of the kite's legs are yellow.

Diet and lifestyle

Black kites are scavengers and predators. They love the remains of animals resting in the sun, dead fish. Of course, they can also hunt, but if there is carrion, they will prefer it. Most of all they like to steal from the nests of chicks of other birds. Adult birds are also included in the menu if they are inferior in size to themselves. Also, these birds, living in Tatarstan and many other places, know how to fish. They cling to fish that have approached the surface with their claws.

The flight of kites is very smooth, measured, they bend their wings a little. These birds benefit agriculture by exterminating ground squirrels, moles, and mice. People do not always treat kites kindly, as they constantly drag ducklings, goslings and chickens.

Breeding

For nesting, black kites arrive in April from the Southern countries, when the snow has not yet melted in places. They can be found not only in the forest, but also near urban settlements, sometimes they can fly into a calm city.

Nests are built independently, or those that are abandoned by other birds and are suitable in size are populated. Typically, the diameter of the nest does not exceed a meter, and they are considered modest, given the size of the birds themselves. The dwelling is settled on a tree or a rock, located at a height of up to fifteen meters from the ground. Nests are insulated with feathers, paper, down and grass.

The female lays eggs in early May, usually two or three future chicks. There may be four eggs in the clutch, in very rare cases five appear. The size is slightly larger than a matchbox, the color is white, with a barely noticeable blue tint. The shell is decorated with brown spots.

It takes up to a month and a half to incubate eggs, and parents share all the worries. After hatching, the chicks do not leave the nest for up to forty-five days, after which they can fly on their own. Sexual maturity in this species occurs at the age of two. In nature, birds can live up to 25 years.

The number of kites

The population has declined greatly in recent years. Scientists attribute this to the use of chemicals in agriculture and with industry. Especially few birds remained on the territory of Russia.

Once a numerous species has become on the verge of extinction, and it is very difficult to correct the current situation.

Conclusion

Birds have been described in this article. These are not all species that are under the threat of complete extinction. It so happened that man became the cause of huge losses in nature. Some species have completely died out, but water bodies continue to be polluted by industry, and no one is fighting this. Birds of Tatarstan, like birds living in other places, need our help. If people do not start working towards saving nature, we will soon lose many useful and beautiful creatures.

 

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