var arrayFacts = [ "House Proud:

The female knot-tying weaverbird will refuse to mate with a male who has built a shoddy nest.

If spurned, the male must take the nest apart and completely rebuild it in order to win the affections of the female.", "Poison Dart Bird:

The only known poisonous bird, the piohuis, comes from New Guinea. These songbirds carry a poison in their skin and feathers, which discourages predators from eating them.

Scientists studying these birds often sneeze or get burning sensations in their mouth and nose.

Tissue tests from the pitohuis have revealed a powerful poison, homobatracho toxin, capable of killing a mouse within 20 minutes. This same nerve agent is found in the poison-dart frog.", "Brilliant Impressionist:

When the lyrebird has its tail erect and partly spread, it forms into the shape of a musical instrument called a lyre--a fitting shape for a bird with extraordinary skill as a mimic.

The lyrebird can reproduce the notes of more than 20 other bird songs in succession.

The lyrebird will also mimic animal and mechanical sounds such as: a horse neighing, a sheep's bleat, and a car motor and horn.", "Who Would Have Thought?

The chief export of an island in the western Pacific Ocean called Nauru is bird droppings! The product is used in the manufacture of many fertilizers.", "Fashionable and Sturdy:

The penculine titmouse of Africa builds its home in such a sturdy manner that Masai tribesmen use their nests as purses and carrying cases.", "Birds or interior decorators?

In the Australian rain forest the bower bird builds an elaborate structure -- a bower -- on the forest floor from twigs, leaves, and moss.

It then decorates the bower with colorful objects, including feathers, pebbles, berries and shells.

When a female arrives to inspect the bower, the male struts and sings. Once he has seduced her, she builds a nest nearby. He can then try to convince another female to join in his family.", "Master Taylor:

Australia's golden-headed cisticola is only three inches long and has an unusual method of nest building.

In the spring, the males gather spider webs for about a week. They first begin the nest with leaves and grass stalks that they will sew together, using their bills.

The bill works like a drill, moving at an amazing rate to drill tiny holes in the nesting material. The bird manipulates the spider web into fine strands of thread, and uses them to weave the plant materials together.", "Suicidal Birds:

An eight year study has failed to come up with an explanation of why birds commit suicide every year in the village of Jatinga.

The village lights attract the birds, who converge on the village at night and on landing become immobile, stop eating and starve.

They resist capture, and many are clubbed to death by the natives who view them as a nuisance. Beginning in early fall, as many as 500 birds, from various species, make a ritualistic flight to their death.

No one is certain why these birds commit mass suicide each year, but scientists have speculated that the weather conditions, coupled with the magnetic pull over Jatinga, disorients the birds causing them to lose control.", "In the Name of Honey!

The greater honeyguide bird calls out loudly to get the attention of a ratel. Why? It needs help opening a bee's nest!

The greater honeyguide bird of eastern Africa loves to eat honey but it can't open bee's nests by itself. When it finds one, it goes looking for an animal called a ratel, or honey badger.

After it attracts the badger's attention it flies towards the bee's nest, making sure it is following.

The badger tears open the nest with its strong claws and both the animals enjoy the spoils.", "The national symbol of Guatemala:

The quetzal is one of the rarest and most beautiful birds in the world.

Found only in remote areas in the rain forest, this iridescent, golden-green bird has a two to three foot long tail feather.

The tail is so long that the quetzal cannot take off without tearing it to shreds. Like a parachutist jumping from a plane, it launches itself backward to lift off.

One advantage to the long tail feather is that it works like a kite tail, giving the quetzal more stability and the ability to do aerial acrobatics when it swoops to catch insects in flight.", "Slick Bird:

South America's oil bird got its name from the fact that it eats the ripe, oily nuts from the palm tree. Because of its extraordinary sense of smell, it can tell when the fruit is ripe and only then will it come from the safety of its cave dwelling.

The oilbird will swallow the palm nut whole and then fly back to the cave to digest it. Part of the extract is regurgitated and used to line the chicks' nest of sticks.

Because their flesh is high in fat content, oilbirds were once killed and rendered for their oil.", "Strong arm? No, beak:

A parrot's beak can close with the force of 350 pounds per square inch.", "Low-Tech Alarm System:

During World War I, parrots were kept caged in the Eiffel Tower to warn of air-raids.

The parrots' acute hearing enabled them to warn of approaching aircraft long before the enemy planes were heard or seen by humans.", "Strange Tongue:

Lorikeets have tongues that look like little brushes for feeding on nectar.", "Copy Bird:

Parrots raised by humans show an amazing ability to mimic human speech and noisy objects, but in the wild they have never been observed mimicking.", "Brilliant Bird:

Prudle, a green parakeet from the UK, was brought into captivity in 1958. The charming bird that learned over 800 words lived until 1994 when she was 35 years old.

Prudle lived much longer as a house pet then most parakeets (and birds in general) live in the wild!", "Why Parakeets Can't Enlist:

Most parakeets only live to be 18 years of age at the most. Other types of parrots can live in the wild for up to 40 years (such a cockatoos). ", "A Good Egg:

The largest known egg was that of the extinct Aepyornis of Madagascar. The egg was 9.5 inches long and had a volume of 2.35 gallons.", "Who Knew?

Fried chicken is the meal most often ordered in sit-down restaurants in the US.", "Outfeathered and Outnumbered:

There are more chickens than people in the world.", "Got a Comb?

Chickens are the only birds with combs, that erect, red, fleshy growth on top of their heads which resembles a decorative Spanish comb.

There are seven distinctive types of combs: rose, strawberry, single, cushion, buttercup, pea and V-shaped.", "'V' for Victory!

Have you seen geese flying in a V in the sky? This formation helps them travel further because each goose relies on the air put off by his neighboring goose in flight. ", "Everyone's a Leader:

Members of a flock of geese usually take turns being the leader.", "Family Vacation:

The parents fly with their young. If you observe a large flock of geese, you can often see the different families landing altogether.", "Follow the Leader:

When a baby duck is just born, it will follow after the first thing it sees moving! In fact, the duckling will follow its adoptive 'mother' around for up to two weeks before stopping.

This could be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on whom the duckling decides to follow. Typically the first thing that it sees is its mother, but if you happen to be by the nest when it hatches, look out! You've found a two-week traveling buddy.", "Morning Ritual:

Ducks will lay eggs only in the mornings.", "No Make-Up Necessary:

Harlequin ducks are named for what characteristic? Their plumage!

These beautiful birds have striking plumage: stripes, dots and commas cover their feathers.", "A Duck That Can Surf?Able to ride atop the waves like corks, paddling with powerful legs and with built in buoyancy, harlequin ducks rival the best of surfers.", "An Evolutionary Joke:

In what could be considered an evolutionary joke, this clumsy bird can barely fly, runs up trees and croaks like a frog. What is this strange bird? The Hoatzin! It's bad enough being the odd bird out, but this creature has to live with smelling like a wet, musky rug.

The remarkable thing about this bird is that it is the last living descendant of the feathered dinosaur archaeopteryx.

This makes it the only surviving model of a time when birds learned to fly.", "Lucky Bird's Toe?

The toes of what bird are considered good luck and made into charms in South America? The Darwin's rhea!", "Bad Anger Management:

In a strange courtship ritual, the male Darwin's rhea runs around the females making various calls while shaking his wings until they succumb to his charms.

The females go in a group to lay their eggs in his nest, then immediately leave when they're done.

Males are so protective of their nests that they will even attack females as they come to lay more eggs.", "Penguin Parka:

Penguins look sleek and fuzzy, but they are actually covered with small dense feathers. Penguins are able to withstand the extreme cold because insulation provided by their short, densely-packed feathers forms a waterproof coat. In fact, they have more feathers than most other birds, with about 80 feathers per square inch.", "Who Would Have Thought?

Flamingo tongues were considered a delicacy, suitable for royalty, in Ancient Rome.", "The Jackass Penguin!

This penguin is only found on the southern coast of Africa. In the past, the penguin nested by burrowing in guano, but most of the guano was removed to produce fertilizer. The penguins have found new homes, or someone else's habitat to live in.

They have been found nesting in gardens, and beneath jacuzzis, spreading guano on paths and yards. Waking people up in the middle of the night, with their mating calls was the last straw for many residents.

Workers moved them back to the beaches, surrounded by fences that will hopefully keep them out of urban areas. Who knows where these stubborn penguins will end up next? The real reason for their name are the sounds they emit, which are similar to a donkey's braying.", "Medicinal Bird:

Found on Australia's coat of arms, this bird produces a wide range of products, including healing oils. Aborigines have been using the oils from the emu for thousands of years to heal wounds, burns and for soothing aching muscles and joints.", "The emu is bred for...

its meat and the skin is used for leather products. About 20 percent of their eggs are unfertilized, so are used for carved and painted pieces of art, selling as much as 1,500 dollars each.", "The Great Emu War:

In 1932, an emu war was launched after farmers complained that the emus were interfering with their crops.

Machine guns and grenades were a waste of ammo - the emus were so adept at camouflage that only 12 were killed. Fences were erected and they have been successful in keeping the emus away from the crops.", "Big Bladder:

The adult Emu drinks 2-4 gallons of water daily.", "First Impressions...

In the year 1598 AD, Portuguese sailors landing on the shores of the island of Mauritius discovered a previously unknown species of bird, the dodo. The sailors mistook the gentle spirit of the dodo and its lack of fear as stupidity.

They named the bird 'dodo' which means simpleton in Portuguese.", "Long Lost Dodo:

The dodo bird is now an extinct bird which is believed to have died out around 1681 AD.", "One Special Bird:

There are 17 species of penguin, the largest being the emperor penguin, which also holds the record for underwater longer than any other penguin.", "Bird Lotion:

Some kinds of birds will plaster dead ants to their bodies so the poisonous formic acid in the ants' bodies will kill parasites common to birds.", "Bird Bath, Bird Brain!

Why is the water in a birdbath supposed to be two and a half inches deep? Less water makes it too difficult for them to groom and more water frightens them.

A depth of exactly two and a half inches of water in a birdbath is ideal for the majority of birds.", "Come Out Of Your Shell

It may take more than 48 hours (2 days) for a chick to break out of its shell.", "Birds Eat and Sleep Eating:

To survive, most birds have to eat at least half their own weight in food each day. It takes a lot of energy to fly. Birds must spend much of their time hunting for food and feeding.", "Brilliant Bird:

Crows that are kept as pets have been taught to say an assortment of words. This is possible because crows have a very complex set of vocal cords.

In fact, the crow is a highly intelligent bird and recent studies have shown that crows and ravens are among the most intelligent bird species.", "All in the Family:

Crows are very family oriented, helping with the nest-building and participating in parental duties with their offspring.", "Counting Crows:

According to German tradition, the number of magpies indicated forthcoming events. One magpie is considered unlucky, three is considered a successful journey, four is good news, and five means company is coming.

A way to counteract bad luck was to take off one's hat to the passing birds.

If a magpie perches on your roof, it meant your house would never fall down, but seeing one on your way to church was a sign of death.", "If a Crow Crosses Your Path...

In England people would carry an onion in their pocket to protect against any evil cast by the magpie (crow).", "Who's Counting?

A robin has almost 3,000 feathers.", "Pigeon Medics:

Pigeons have been used to deliver blood samples and drugs between London hospitals.", "Pigeon Photographers...who knew?

Carrier pigeons were the first ever to take aerial photographs, with cameras strapped to their bodies.", "Airmail (part I):

Kublai Khan connected the entire Chinese empire by pigeon post by the thirteenth century.", "Airmail (part II):

In 1814, a carrier pigeon delivered the message of Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo.", "Airmail (part III):

In 1886, the first airmail service between London and the United States was established with carrier pigeons.", "News is in the Air:

The Reuters news agency used carrier pigeons to deliver messages and some Japanese newspapers still do.", "Pigeon Pals:

Female pigeons can only lay eggs when there is another pigeon near.", "Pigeons to the rescue!

Pigeons can be trained to deliver messages and return home. These skilled birds are called 'homing pigeons.' They have been used in numerous wars to send secrets back and forth, some flying over 1,000 miles.

Pigeons have the ability to memorize the routes they take. This skill is part of the pigeon's nature, but trainers begin working with them when they are as young as two months to strengthen this ability.", "Light On its Feet:

The bones of a pigeon weigh less than its feathers.", "I'm as hungry as a… Hummingbird?

Hummingbirds, though very small birds, must eat all the time. Why? Because they burn so much energy flying. They eat about every 10 minutes and can starve to death within one hour if no food is available!", "Hungry Hummingbirds:

Hummingbirds eat up to fifty percent of their body weight each day.

They mainly eat plant nectar or liquid from hummingbird feeders, although they do eat some bugs.", "An Elephant's Memory?

Who would have thought elephants and hummingbirds have so much in common? Hummingbirds have excellent memories and can even recall the locations of their favorite bird feeders and flowers from the previous year.", "Stunt Bird:

Hummingbirds are capable of flying forward, backward and even upside-down.", "Lucky Birds:

Hummingbirds in flight have the highest metabolism of all animals except insects.", "Hummingbird hibernation?

Hummingbirds can slow down their metabolism at night, or any other time food is not readily available.

They enter a hibernation-like state known as torpor. During torpor, the bird's heart rate and rate of breathing slow dramatically so it can survive with less food.", "Yankee Doodle Dandy:

After the Revolutionary War a man named Alexander Wilson discovered the Red-cockaded woodpecker.

The red patches on the sides of this woodpecker's head reminded him of the red feathers worn by Army officers. They would stick the feathers into black and white ribbons on their hats. These ribbons were called cockades.

In other countries, officers used gold decorations called macaroni. That is the meaning behind the line in the song 'stuck a feather in his hat and called it macaroni.'

Since American officers couldn't afford gold, they used red feathers, bringing Wilson to name this bird the Red-cockaded woodpecker.", "Tree Lover:

A medium-sized bird with a white clown face and a red crown, the acorn woodpecker is definitely an acorn lover.

Picking acorns from trees, and even taking whole branches holding multiple acorns, this bird never leaves the trees unless of course there are acorns lying on the ground.", "Why Woodpeckers Don't Need Advil:

The woodpecker has a specially constructed head and beak to protect it from headaches while hammering away at trees.", ];