Hide Notes 

Slide 1: ==== ==== Hello, for more great tips about these lovely birds check this web page: http://www.finchesbirdstips.com/ ==== ==== Are you interested in taking care of extraordinary type of birds? One of the best options that you may look into is the Galapagos Island Finches. These birds are well-known for their phenomenal adaptations, which they have developed while they are being isolated in the islands far off the coast of Ecuador (1000km away). Some studies concluded that because of their isolation, they are considered to be extinct. However, wind and sea currents bring in many seeds of plants, grasses and trees and even insects which have created its ecosystem. They also believe that the ancestors of the Galapagos Island finches were brought there by strong winds. Fortunately, these birds managed to survive through its rich ecosystem. These finches are well-known for its extraordinary adaptations which they have developed as they were isolated in these islands. Many biologists who visited the islands for their study, including Charles Darwin, noticed that these Galapagos finches differ from one species to another. The Darwin's finches, as they are often called, consist of 13 Galapagos species and another from the Coco Island. The notable features of the finches in Galapagos Island are the sizes and shapes of their beaks. It will take some time and effort in identifying this type of finches because of the variations of their beaks, thus making it important in the study of their evolution. According to studies done in the islands, the finches came from a single ancestor which is the blue-black grass quit finch (volatina jacarina), known to be common in the coast of Pacific Ocean in South America. The unique beak sizes and shapes of the Galapagos finches, through time, have adapted to the available food sources in the island. Their beak also reflects their feeding specializations. The evolution of these Galapagos finches is somewhat amazing. Some finches have developed strong beaks which make it possible for them to crack hard seeds. Others have fine and long beaks for them to reach insect larvae in tiny holes. You may also find smart Galapagos finches like the woodpecker and mangrove finches which makes use of stick to poke larvae of insects out from dead tree branches and cactus plants. Each finch adaptation has given them advantage and this characteristic did spread throughout their population. Most finches in Galapagos are brownish or black in color with short-rounded wings, and tails that sometimes appears cocked on one side. The matured male finches of Galapagos turns out to be solid black in color and the matured females have a drab grayish color (except for the vegetarian and tree finches). These tree and vegetarian matured male finches have black heads, necks and upper breasts. While warbler, woodpecker and mangrove finches have an olive color. Among the thirteen species, six of them are called ground finches. These finches feed on different
Slide 2: sizes of seeds and cactus flowers depending on the size and shape of their beaks. When Peter and Rosemary Grant did a study on the Galapagos Islands, they learned that ground finches mostly breed among themselves. They have concluded that the six species of ground finches could actually come from a certain kind, where they evolved to have larger and smaller beaks depending on the availability of seeds during the wet or dry seasons. ==== ==== Hello, for more great tips about these lovely birds check this web page: http://www.finchesbirdstips.com/ ==== ====