Miscellaneous Birds

Hummingbird feeders are a great way to help those little fliers, but to feed them responsibly, you need to keep your feeders clean and fill them correctly.

By Jesslyn Shields

They are all huge, but does it surprise you that none of the nine biggest birds can fly?

By Jesslyn Shields

Budgies are the same species as parakeets and make fabulous pets – and, yes, they love to talk!

By Laurie L. Dove

There are 126 species of birds that don't have the ability to fly, for various evolutionary reasons. Let's meet seven of them.

By Katie Carman

Magpies are much-maligned as harbingers of doom, thieves of shiny objects and songbird eggs, but they're smart, monogamous for life and actually hold funerals for one another.

By Patty Rasmussen

The cartoon Roadrunner beep-beeped his way through the desert, outfoxing Wile E. Coyote every time, but the real bird can run up to 27 mph and, in some Native American traditions, offers protection from evil spirits.

By Jesslyn Shields

There's more to Australia's kookaburra than the cheery song you learned as a kid, but what is it that makes the kookaburra laugh?

By Patty Rasmussen & Mack Hayden

Biochemically like a heron and anatomically similar to a pelican, the shoebill stork has been called "Monsterface" and even "Death Pelican." But wait until you hear the staccato rat-a-tat-tat of its booming machine-gun call.

By Carrie Tatro & Zach Taras

Generations of cereal eaters grew up sharing the breakfast table with Toucan Sam, famous for following his long, colorful nose — but what's that bill for besides hawking cereal?

By Jesslyn Shields

This exotic bird could seriously injure or kill a person or a dog in an instant with its deadly claws.

By Wendy Bowman & Marie Look

When a half-full plate of dinner sits before you and your overstuffed tummy, have you ever been told your eyes are too big for your stomach? The pelican's got a similar problem.

By Shanna Freeman

The parrots of the Telegraph Hill neighborhood of San Francisco are legendary, but how did they get there?

By Jesslyn Shields

There's a lot of conversation around what we should be feeding our backyard hummingbird visitors, so we threw the question, along with others, to an expert.

By Jamie Allen

A French theme park has trained a crew of six rooks to pick up after its messy guests.

By Jesslyn Shields

Thanks to new technology, researchers have discovered that the common swift flies 10 months a year without landing, setting a world record for uninterrupted time aloft.

By Jesslyn Shields & Mack Hayden

Ruby-throated hummingbirds migrate annually from the U.S. all the way to Central America. How often would one need to stop? A new study reveals amazing abilities.

By Christopher Hassiotis & Zach Taras

When a friend decides to ignore their problems, you might liken them to an ostrich. But ostriches are much more likely to face a problem head-on than hide it in the sand.

By Bambi Turner

You are an avid birdwatcher and would like to know how to identify birds. This article will tell you all about how to identify birds.

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors

Did you know that it's the possession of feathers, not the ability to fly, that distinguishes birds from other animals? Take a view of these bird pictures to see how many you recognize.

By Marie Bobel

Penguins and puffins might love formal wear and waddling, but the similarities end there. These fish-loving birds don't see eye to eye on issues like transportation and real estate.

By Cristen Conger

Flamingos can stand on one spindly leg for hours. But why do they do it? Are they posing as a tree to trick prey, or simply avoiding a bathtub prune-foot?

By Julia Layton

Hummingbirds almost never stop moving is and their legs are small and weak. So do hummingbirds do everything in midair -- even mate?

By Julia Layton

While the ostrich might look like an avian punch line, it's actually a nutritious source of red meat. Why do ostriches produce meat that's more like that of a cow than a chicken?

By Julia Layton

A large, flightless bird that lives in the dry grasslands of Africa, the ostrich is raised for its feathers and skin in South Africa, Egypt and California. Ostriches form the single remaining species in an ancient, primitive order of birds.

By the Editors of Publications International, Ltd.

As Hitchcock's 1963 horror classic "The Birds" taught us, it's a good idea to respect our avian friends. Before you accidentally let any bad luck take wing, peck away at these bird-related superstitions.

By Bambi Turner