#pteroclidae

Pin-tailed Sandgrouse (Pterocles alchata), family Pteroclidae, order Pterocliformes, Israel

There are plenty of great dads in the world, but Namaqua sandgrouse dads really know how to go the distance. Every day, males fly up to 20 km (12 mi) from their nest to a watering hole and back to deliver water to their chicks. But they don't carry the water in their beaks; instead, their belly feathers are specially designed to retain up to 25 ml (0.8 oz) of water. Unfortunately, this isn't nearly enough to keep his thirsty chicks satisfied, so dad often spends the whole day flying back and forth from the watering hole.

A group of Pallas's sandgrouse (Syrrhaptes paradoxus) flock by the water in Mongolia

[2988/11080] Double-banded sandgrouse - Pterocles bicinctus

Order: Pterocliformes (sandgrouse) Family: Pteroclidae

Pallas's Sandgrouse vs American Dipper

sources under cut

Pallas's Sandgrouse

"I picked them for a compare and contrast poster on third grade but I have no idea why"

Their scientific name Syrrhaptes means "sewn together", as their front toes are fused together. They are fluffy on top and have a fleshy pad beneath, and are said to resemble a paw more than an regular bird foot.

"Male parents soak their breast plumage in water while drinking, allowing their chicks to drink from the absorbed moisture on their return." Due to their diet of dry seeds, sandgrouse often need to drink a large volume of water and will fly in huge flocks to find watering holes at dusk and dawn. They can drive up to 121 km (75 mi) a day to do so.

American Dipper

"absolutely absurd to see them swim up-current. they're like fish to me. also i love their bounciness"

hey so who decided to let a songbird get in the water?? Most birds associated with water belong to the non-passerine families, but dippers decided no one else was jumping in those cold mountain streams and decided to do it themselves.

"They have even been known to place their nests behind waterfalls, so the birds must fly straight through falling water to access them."