[EBB Sightings] The thrasher beak

Look at the flamingo and it's eating habits.  The curve is needed for an
effective sweep.  That puts more of the bill horizontal to the ground.  A
woodpecker bill would not be effective for moving leaf litter.

Ralf

-----Original Message-----
From: sightings-bounces at diabloaudubon.com
[mailto:sightings-bounces at diabloaudubon.com] On Behalf Of Joseph Morlan
Sent: Thursday, June 11, 2009 15:41
To: audubon mt.diablo
Subject: Re: [EBB Sightings] The thrasher beak

On Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:22:10 -0700 (PDT), Phila Rogers

> I've read that they use their beak to "sweep" off leaf litter in search of
food and even use it as a tool to probe for edibles, but why the deep curve?

The California Thrasher and related species forage by digging in the dirt.
I believe the extreme curvature of the bill is an adaptation for digging. 

Other species, such as the Brown Thrasher do a lot of leaf-tossing and have
a less curved bill. 

Joseph Morlan, Pacifica, CA