Outline of birds

High school (ages 12+)
Animals & Nature

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/outline-of-birds

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the scientific name?Class Aves. This class encompasses all extant and extinct birds
2. What are birds and where do they come from?Birds are animals in the Class Aves that evolved from theropod dinosaurs. Fossil evidence, like Archaeopteryx, shows the transition from reptiles to birds.
3. Why do birds have feathers and what do they do?Feathers began as insulation or display and now help birds fly, keep warm, and stay waterproof. They also give birds their colorful looks.

Theropod Dinosaurs: A diverse group of bipedal carnivorous dinosaurs from which birds are believed to have evolved.
Bioindicator: A species or organism whose presence, absence, or abundance reflects the condition of an ecosystem.
Niche Partitioning: The process by which competing species use the environment differently in a way that helps them to coexist.