What is the average lifespan of a bird?

What is the average lifespan of a bird?

It is difficult to get an accurate figure on the lifespan of wild birds, says the American Bird Conservancy.

However, usually, the larger the bird species, the longer it lives. Therefore, the Ostrich in the Struthionidae family, lives longer than the House Sparrow in the Passeridae family. 

For example, the large Wandering Albatross (Diomedea exulans) in the Diomedeidae family, with the longest wingspan of any bird on Earth – up to 350 centimetres (11.5 feet) across – can live up to 80 years.

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How long do bird eggs take to hatch?

How long do bird eggs take to hatch?

Different bird species lay different sized eggs. Large birds lay larger eggs than smaller birds.

The chicks of larger bird species usually take longer to hatch than the chicks of smaller bird species.

Some examples include the following:

The Ostrich is the the largest bird in the world and its egg is the largest bird egg in the world. It measures about 15 centimetres (6 inches) long. The egg takes about 35-45 days to hatch.

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Dark-Eyed Junco

The Dark-Eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) is a bird in the Passerellidae family of sparrows. It is a song bird. It was formerly known as the Snowbird and the Slate-Coloured Junco.

The Dark-Eyed Junco is small and greyish. It has a grey head, neck, chest, back, and wings. Its belly is white. Its white outer tail feathers are distinctive. It has a small, pale pinkish beak and dark, round eyes. The male is usually darker than the female. The female has a brownish-grey to reddish-brown side feathers.

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RESEARCH: The four most common wild bird species in the world

There are 50 billion wild birds on Earth – but four species dominate – says a New Scientist article on 17 May 2021.

Earth has around 50 billion wild bird species according to a new global estimate, but most species are very rare and only a handful number in the billions.

Just four wild species have over a billion individuals, and they are the most common wild bird species in the world. This is in contrast to 1,180 species that have less than 5,000 individual birds each.

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RESEARCH: Sparrows are healthier when living in groups with diverse personalities

House Sparrows are healthier when living in groups with diverse personalities. Research scientists think that House Sparrows that live in groups in which different individuals have different personality types are healthier than those that live in groups with the same personality type.

The “surprising” findings suggest that personality diversity promotes not only a healthier society of sparrows, but also better physical and mental health for each individual within that society, says Zoltan Barta at the University of Debrecen in Hungary.

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Dunnock

The Dunnock (Prunella modularis) is a small passerine, or perching and singing bird in the accentor family. It is also called the Hedge Accentor, the Hedge Sparrow, or the Hedge Warbler. 

The Dunnock is a brown bird with streaks of darker brown on its back. Its underbelly is light-brown. It has a blue-grey head. It has a fine-pointed beak. It has pink legs. The male and female look similar. 

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Eurasian Tree Sparrow

The Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus dilutus) is a passerine bird in the sparrow family.

The Eurasian Tree Sparrow has a chestnut crown and nape, with a black patch on each white cheek. It also has a black patch on its chin, throat, and the area between its beak and throat. Its beak is grey in summer and darker, almost black, in winter. Its upperparts are light brown, streaked with black. Its brown wings have two distinct, narrow, white bars. Its legs are pale brown. 

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House Sparrow

The House Sparrow (Passer domesticus domesticus) is a small bird in the Passeridae family of sparrows.

The House Sparrow has black, white, and brown feathers, with grey underparts. The female has more grey feathers on her back than the male. The male has a dark-grey crown and a black patch on its throat. The female has no black markings or dark-grey crown. It has a short, thick greyish-black beak. Its tail is short. 

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White-Browed Sparrow Weaver

The White-Browed Sparrow-Weaver (Plocepasser mahali melanorhynchus) is a common small brown bird found in eastern Africa. It is also found in southern Africa, especially in dry grasslands and woodlands.

The White-Browed Sparrow-Weaver has a broad, white eyebrow stripe, which gives it the name white-browed. The male has a black beak and the female has a light grey beak.

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