12 Strangest And Rarest Birds In The World!

hi everyone its Katrina from scary bone-eating birds-of-prey two beautiful colored birds honored by the gods here are 12 of the most amazing and strangest birds in the world [Music] number 12 bone eating bearded vulture the bearded vulture also known as the latter Geyer is a pretty intense bird it is a bird of prey and known for its unusual habit of dropping bones or freshly killed corpses on top of rocks to shatter the bone so they can get to the marrow inside it's a little bit scary looking as it also dies its feathers blood-red with soil that contains iron oxide don't worry it's not blood but it makes it one of the most feared birds in the animal kingdom there are people who believe that the bearded vulture has carried away children however this has never been proven but it does have a fearsome reputation they can be found in Europe Asia and Africa and have a wingspan of about six to nine feet its name lamb or Geyer means lamb mulcher in German because that is what it was famous for eating 80% of the birds diet consists of bones and bone marrow after finding a picked-over carcass the bird will drop it from a tremendous height in order to bust it open these birds are very little danger to humans except for they're dropping technique not only do these birds pick up carcasses but they also pick up other animals like large tortoises if you are around the area when the bird is about to drop its dinner you could be seriously injured or even killed it is said that the Greek playwright Aeschylus was killed when a tortoise fell from the sky maybe the latter guard dropped it number 11 ribbon tailed Australia there are 42 known species of bird of paradise but the one that stands out the most is called the ribbon tailed Australia native to the Central Highlands of Papua New Guinea they can grow to just over 3 feet long and have an olive green and bronze colored plumage the most notable feature of this bird of course is its tail which is the longest tail in relation to body size of any bird on earth in some cases it can be more than 3 times the length of their body their diet is made up of insects spiders and frogs and they the most recent of all the bird of paradise species to be discovered their limited range however means that they are already considered as a near threatened species they are easy to capture and there is a high demand for their beautiful tails they are also monogamous so if a nest is affected by deforestation breeding pairs that are separated will never match up with any others making them more endangered by the minute number 10 andean of the rock with its bright plumage and the fan-shaped crest of males it's no surprise that the Andean of the rock has become a national bird of Peru where it is found the orange red coloration covers its head and chest while they have a black tail and wing feathers they feed on fruit and small vertebrates but the most interesting behavioral trait of this species is their mating ritual the male's perform a courtship dance at a display ground which sees them jump up and down and make a variety of croaking sounds the one that seemed to be the most athletic with the best dance and hops and has the most vivid colors will win the affection of the female I mean who can resist that the female then lays her eggs in crescent-shaped nests that they build from mud because of their unusual appearance Andean of the rocks have become popular in the international wildlife trade but it's unclear how much this an deforestation is affecting the species due to their habitats covering large stretches of jungle accurate estimates of population numbers are virtually impossible but its large range means it's currently classed as being okay number 9 the cacao the kakapo is a critically endangered species of nocturnal flightless parrot that's native to the forests of New Zealand also called the owl parrot these birds were very important to the mau d inspiring many stories and legends it's thought that they were widespread across the country until humans arrived with predators such as cats rats ferrets and stoats and hunted them almost to extinction their number fell to as low as just fifty in the 1990s before conservation efforts began they are quite large growing to 25 inches in length and can weigh up to 9 pounds their faces her pale and almost look like those of an owl while their feathers are moss green colored with hints of yellow that allowed them to blend into their surroundings as with other bird species in the country they evolved without any natural predators and aren't exactly quick to get away from danger their wings aren't big enough to allow them to fly and are instead used to help them balance when walking on logs or to help them control their descent if they fall from a branch it is the world's only flightless parrot so it's not really good for their survival now there are thought to be only several hundred remaining all of which live on to predator free Islands when a awho an anchor and it's hoped that they can be introduced to other areas as they begin to breed more number eight Shoebill stork Shoebill stork can be found across the marshes of East Africa in countries like South Sudan and Uganda where they are seen standing as still as they can in the water and wait for their prey to pass by they grow up to five feet tall have a wingspan of more than eight feet and their bills look more like a wooden clog shoe than a mouth despite their name they aren't actually a species of stork and are instead much more closely related to pelicans they've become known as rather aggressive birds not just because of the death stare they appear to have when lying in wait for food and with their bill pushed against their body but also because they have a mean bite the first zoologist who studied them in the Victorian era wrote of how vicious they could be and they often refused to get anywhere near them there are very few places in the world outside of Africa that you can see a shoe bill because they are notoriously difficult to breed in captivity in fact in the past 100 years only two chicks have been successfully born that weren't in the wild and this has led to them being an extremely high demand on the black market a healthy live Shoebill stork can sell for around ten thousand dollars in Dubai or Saudi Arabia so efforts to prevent their international trade are ongoing number seven vulturine guinea fowl this majestic looking bird is the vulturine guinea fowl the largest of any of the guinea fowl species it can be found in Northeast Africa and Ethiopia Kenya and Tanzania where they feed on seeds and small invertebrates these birds live together in flocks of around 25 individuals and although they are able to fly they prefer to stay on the ground and run away from threats they live in areas with a great deal of open space but you rarely see one far away from cover or in a tree and the best way to know if there's one nearby is to listen out for its distinctive call that sounds like it's going cheep cheep cheep they can grow to around 30 inches tall and have an unusually small head in relation to the rest of their body their blue heads closely resemble those of a vulture because of the lack of plumage but they're bright blue white and black feathers across their bodies make them look more like a jewel on the harsh savannah landscape they are used to the dry environment and can go for long periods without needing to drink they make up for this by foraging for fruit grubs and vegetation which provides them with a source of liquid while also giving them the nutrition that they need and now for number 6 but first be sure subscribe to origins explained if you haven't already and let us know your favorite bird in the comments below number six resplendent Quetzal the resplendent Quetzal is often called the rare jewel bird of the world by people native to Central America where the Quetzal is found many consider it the most beautiful bird in the world due to the male quetzals long twin tail feathers and vibrant colouring the feathers can grow a train up to 3 feet long and colors range from green to blue to yellow to ultramarine they are the national bird of guatemala and are also the name of the currency the Quetzal the bird was sacred to the ancient Maya and Aztec people and it is often closely associated with the God Quetzalcoatl as the God of the air and is a symbol of goodness and light rulers priests and nobility were headdresses made up of Quetzal feathers however it was a crime to kill a kecil bird so they would capture them take the feathers and set them free the birds build their nests over 200 feet in the air and during mating season makes special local calls females lay two blue eggs in a nest built in a rotten tree sadly since the tree has to be rotten it often damages the eggs leading to a high rate of nest failure about 70 percent but both parents take turns incubating and taking care of their young the Quetzal bird is listed as near threatened due to habitat loss number 5 the golden pheasant golden pheasants which are found in China are one of the most unusual species of pheasant you will ever see despite being native to mountainous regions in the west of the country they have been exported around the world and stable populations have now been established across Europe South America and Australasia they grow to around 41 inches long with a tail that makes up at least two-thirds of that but it's their coloration that makes them truly stand out they have a golden crest with red blue and black plumage across the body and yellow feet it's only the male's with these colors however as they are used by the females to decide which ones are worth mating with the females on the other hand have duller brown feathers which makes them look much more similar to other types of pheasant it's another species that avoids flying whenever it can and will usually try to run to avoid danger if possible they spend most of their lives on the ground in search of leaves seeds and insects but at night they'll roost high up in the trees to keep away from danger when they're asleep number four Rufus Poe - the Rufus PO - is a small species of bird from South America where they live in the leaf debris of the rain forests across Venezuela Ecuador Peru and Brazil they can grow to up to 10 inches long and it has one of the most effective camouflage adaptations of any bird because they look just like a decaying leaf when they're roosting in a tree it's virtually impossible to see them but you'll always know one is close by from the distinctive call that echoes through the forest canopy although you'll only ever hear it on nights when there is a full moon they are usually a dull brown color with white spots and dark speckles and the tail is a little bit darker than the rest of its body it's not just the body of the Rufus Poe - that's perfectly camouflaged they do the same with their nests - unusually they are built on a single vertical branch and lay just one egg which means it's virtually invisible to any potential predators number three the spectacled eiders spectacle diners are an unusual species of large sea duck that can be found in the cold waters of Alaska northern Siberia they grow to be around 22 inches long and are identifiable by their black chests white backs and very strange facial markings with white spectacle patches around their eyes very diving species and feed mainly on mollusks and crustaceans from the ocean but moved to inland wetland areas during the spring when it's time to breed population numbers of this species rapidly declined between the 1970s and the 1990s and it's not entirely clear why this happened they are now classified as being threatened and there are now only three primary nesting areas in the coastal plains of Alaska Russia and the yukon-kuskokwim Delta efforts are underway to prevent illegal harvesting of them and to further understand how the ecosystem is changing and affecting their reproduction and it's hoped conservation programs will help them to recover number two hawazin poets ins are the national birds of Guiana and are native to the swamps and forests of the Amazon basin where you'll often see them searching for leaves and fruit they have beautiful orange crest and a baby blue face but there's one adaptation in this species of bird that has led to the rather unfortunate alternative name of the stink bird they have an unusually large crop where they hold their food so it can ferment before being swallowed this is a vital part of their digestive process though results in them emitting a really bad smell if that's not enough they are also very noisy they constantly groan croak hiss and grunt and almost appear to dance alongside the sounds they aren't very good fliers and due to deforestation they are considered to be an at-risk species number one the long waddled umbrella bird native to the Pacific slope of the Andes between Colombia and southern Ecuador are these strange creatures the long waddled umbrella birds apart from having an impressive quiff light crest on their heads they also have a huge chest wattle it's so big in fact that it gets in the way of them flying so they've developed the ability to retract it at will this has also become a crucial part of their mating behavior - and groups of males perform Lexx which show off their waddles and their ability to retract and extend them in an attempt to prove their worth to the females they're a highly prized catch for hunters which along with threats from habitat destruction and predators in the region means that they are considered to be a vulnerable species and one that could become endangered soon if things keep going as they are thanks for watching be sure to subscribe if you haven't already and I'll see you in the next video bye

Channel: Origins Explained

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Keywords: strangest birds, rarest birds, most unique birds, birds you won't believe exist, world's weirdest birds, most amazing birds, most beautiful birds, awesome birds, strange birds, weird birds, bizarre birds, bird species, strangest birds in the world, strangest bird calls, most stunningly beautiful birds in the world, weirdest looking birds, colorful birds, exotic birds, most beautiful birds in the world, birds, nature, animals, wildlife, beautiful, amazing, origins explained top 10

Id: MgTFYtaVU8k

Length: 13min 14sec (794 seconds)

Published: Sat Feb 22 2020