Then compare the drawings with the one from Alaska's Birds, pg. Have students look at chicken bones. Point out that the hollow bones reduce weight. Struts in some of the bones help strengthen the bones without adding much extra weight. How Birds Fly Like airplanes, birds are streamlined and are built of light materials so that they can lift easily in the air.
Feathers point backward.
Bills are lighter and more streamlined than the heavy jaws of mammals and reptiles. Most bird bones are hollow and filled with air from the bird's lungs. Even the wishbone is hollow. Next time you eat chicken or duck, look at the hollow bones. Birds move through the air by pulling themselves forward like a person rowing a boat.