The Life of Birds
By: Ashley Rathman
All bird life cycles begin at the egg.
Hatchling is the next stage of a bird's life.
These baby birds are born naked and blind
and depend on their mother for survival.
Fledgling is the next stage of a bird's life.
A fledgling is ready to leave the nest. They have all their feathers and can fly.
They still depend on their mother for food. They still have yellow around their mouths.
A juvenile bird is the next stage of a bird's life.
A juvenile can fly around on its own. It can find food for itself, but sometimes its parents can still feed it.
A juvenile bird gets ready for its migration by eating A LOT!
Once the birds have eaten enough food, they prepare for their first mirgration.
They fly with their families down south where it is warm for the winter.
They relax until it is time to return north again for the breeding season.
When the birds come back from their time down south, they are ready for their first breeding season.
They have beautiful, colorful feathers and try to find their territories.
They sing to attract mates and scare away other males.
Once the male has defined his territory. He chooses a mate to start his own family with.
The female gets attracted to him by his song and his bright feathers.
Birds build nests when they find a mate to make babies with.
Nest building is very tiresome and takes a lot of material and energy.
Once the male and female have found each other, they mate to make babies.
They touch their private parts together, which will create eggs.
This is called cloaca kissing.
Once the pair mates, they lay their eggs.
Their cycle begins again!