Bird Missing Letters Trivia Quiz

Answer: thrush

th(RUSH). The thrush is a small songbird and the European song thrush is mottled brown with a lighter, speckled breast. Many are noted for their melodious songs and they feed mainly on insects and fruit. The Eurasian blackbird and the American robin are familiar members of the thrush family which live in most parts of the world.

Answer: raven

(RAVE)n. The raven is a large bird with black, glossy plumage. They feed on small animals, fruits and seeds as well as carrion which is dead or rotting flesh.

Answer: heron

(HERO)n. The heron lives near rivers as it is a wading bird and feeds mainly on fish. It has a long neck and long legs. Their plumage is generally white, grey or brown. Heron species include the black-headed heron, the whistling heron and the African goliath heron which can be 1.4 metres in height.

Answer: puffin

(PUFF)in. The puffin can be seen around the North Atlantic Ocean and Arctic coasts. It feeds on fish and shellfish, and due to the size of its serrated-edged bill, it can carry several items at a time. The upper parts of the puffin's body are black whereas the underparts are white.

In summer the puffin's bill is colourful but is small and duller during the wintertime as part of the beak is shed.

Answer: snipe

(SNIP)e. The snipe can be seen in swampy grasslands and coastal areas around the world where they dig, under cover, for food. It is a long-billed wading bird which is both shy and secretive as it uses its plumage to provide effective camouflage among surrounding vegetation.

Answer: turkey

(TURK)ey. The common wild turkey of North America was abundant in numbers but its population decreased due to overhunting . The domestic turkey is widely bred for its flesh which is used as food and can be found throughout the world. Turkeys are large birds and have bare skin on their neck and head.

Although the male and female turkeys are similar in appearance, female turkeys have a duller plumage, are smaller in size and have smaller leg spurs.

Answer: jackdaw

(JACK)daw. The jackdaw has black and dark grey plumage and is well noted for its thieving habits. It prefers the open country where it frequents buildings, ruins or cliffs. Although a relative of the crow, it is smaller in size and has white-rimmed eyes and grey plumage on its head.

Answer: sparrow

(SPAR)row. Sparrows are finch-like birds that inhabit human settlements. They eat worms, fruit and household scraps but it is their preference for grain and their twittering in flocks which makes them widely regarded as pests.

Answer: osprey

os(PREY). The osprey is known in the United States and Canada as the fish hawk. It has large, broad wings and a short, hooked bill and can be found in all continents except Antarctica. The osprey is regarded as the ultimate fish-catching bird of prey.

Answer: curlew

(CURL)ew. The curlew is a wading bird with a mottled brown plumage. Its habitat is one of marshlands, moors or wet meadows where it forages for food using its down-curved bill. The diet of this long-legged bird is insects, spiders, worms, molluscs and the occasional small tadpole.

Answer: mallard

(Mall)ard. The mallard is a duck which is native to the Northern hemisphere although widely introduced to other parts of the world. The male has a distinctive dark green head and a reddish-brown breast and can be often seen feeding, tail-up in shallow water. The female mallard, by contrast, has a rather plain brown plumage with distinctive blue feathers on her wings.

Answer: starling

(STAR)ling. Starlings are songbirds which are found throughout the world. Their diet consists of insects, fruit, grain, birds' eggs and lizards. Generally their plumage is dark but can be highlighted with a beautiful sheen of blue, green or purple especially during the breeding season. Special thanks to 'Dizart' who suggested 'redstart', a European songbird, as an alternative answer.

Answer: flamingo

fla(MING)o. Flamingos have a distinctive bright pink or red and white plumage which is attained from the birds' diet of plant and animal microplankton. Food is strained from the muddy waters of lagoons or lakes using hair-like filters within their bills.

The five species of flamingos all have long necks and large wings and all are able to swim and they fly with their neck and legs extended in flight.

Answer: hoopoe

(HOOP)oe. The hoopoe has black and white wings and a fawny-coloured, upper body plumage. It feeds on insects and larvae using its long, curved beak and is distinctive with its fan-like crest. Special thanks to ozzz2002 who said 'hoopoo' is an alternative spelling of the hoopoe bird.

Answer: plover

p(LOVE)r. The plover is a shore bird which has a short, straight bill, large pointed wings and a round head. It is generally a rather plump bird with a brown and white plumage and short legs. The golden plover is a larger bird which inhabits Northern Europe and is distinctive with its black cheeks and a broad black band on its flanks and belly.

Answer: ostrich

ost(RICH). The ostrich is found in Africa and is the largest living bird. The male has a black and white plumage whereas the female, a brown and white plumage. Although ostriches can't fly they are the fastest creature on two legs attaining speeds of up to 44 mph. Although they mainly eat plants as food they do occasionally feed on small reptiles.

Answer: siskin

si(SKIN). The siskin is one of the smallest members of the finch family and the Eurasian variety is yellow and black in colour. Its habitat is chiefly among fir trees where it is an agile forager as it searches for tree seeds and insects. It can be found in Scandinavia, central Europe and northern England and extends eastwards as far as western Siberia.

Answer: nuthatch

nu(THAT)ch. The nuthatch uses its sharp bill to open and eat nuts. Its diet also includes seeds, berries, insects and spiders. Its plumage is a slate-blue colour on its upper parts and a buff colour underneath. Nuthatches are found throughout Europe with the exception of Ireland and northern Scandinavia.

Answer: nightingale

nightin(GALE). The nightingale is a brown European songbird with paler underparts and is famous for its song which is mostly heard at night. Its a shy bird that feeds on insects, grubs, worms and berries.

Answer: weaverbird

wea(VERB)ird. The weaverbird is a short-billed, finch-like bird which weaves intricate nests from grass and leaves. This complex nest is constructed by the male weaverbird but no adhesive is used. Instead he knots and twists leaf strips to build an enclosed impressive hanging structure. Hope the quiz hasn't left you feeling bird-brained.

The silverbird is a variety of flycatcher, native to eastern Africa.