Built to Scavenge: teacher key

Andean Condors, grade 7 edition, written for 7th grade. An Andean condor has a hooked beak, blunt talons and a bare head for a life of eating dead animals. Read how it finds food, how it soars and how a family lives.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. How do Andean condors find food, compared with the smaller vultures they may follow?
   • By smell
   • By sight (answer)
   • By sound
2. What suits a condor's blunter talons?
   • Walking and scavenging (answer)
   • Catching fish
   • Climbing trees
3. How do condors stay up for hours?
   • By flapping quickly
   • By using rising warm air (answer)
   • By landing often
4. A condor may be unable to fly after a very large meal. Where might it be after eating?
   • High above the clouds
   • On the ground (answer)
   • Far out at sea
5. A condor has no feathers on its head. How does that help?
   • It keeps the bird clean while it eats (answer)
   • It helps the bird swim
   • It makes the bird faster
6. What does roost mean in: a communal roost?
   • A place where birds rest (answer)
   • A kind of food
   • A bird song

Words

• scavengers: eaters of carrion
• talons: bird claws
• carcass: dead animal body
• roost: resting place
• wingspan: wing size