LEAP 2025 ELA Grade 4 Pre Test

General Information

1. Seabirds are birds that have adapted to life within the marine environment. They are also known as marine birds. There are many types of seabirds. In fact, there are 312 different species of seabirds.

2. Most seabirds live and nest along the different coasts of North America. Other seabirds mostly stay out in the open ocean and come on land to nest. There are large seabirds, such as the albatross, with a wingspan of up to 12 feet to the tiny storm petrel that is only 5 inches tall.

3. Most seabirds at one time or another can be seen flying along coastlines or overland. Bad weather and strong winds sometimes push seabirds off course.

4. Many species of seabirds spend most of their lives at sea. So little is known about their habits and movements. Studies have shown that many seabirds, such as albatrosses and petrels, have long life spans. Some seabirds live for more than 60 years.

Adapting to the Marine World

5. Seabirds have a great sense of smell. This helps them find food in the large oceans. Drinking salty sea water can be fatal to man and most animals. But drinking salt water is not harmful to seabirds. Seabirds have a special gland located near each eye that filters out excess salt from their blood into the nasal passages. If you look at a seabird up close, it may appear to have a runny nose. Or you might think it is crying. This is actually the salty water being removed by the gland.

6. Some seabirds eat food from the ocean’s surface. Seabirds that eat food from the surface of the water typically eat plankton, small fish, krill, and squid. Some seabirds eat food by diving down into the ocean. Seabirds that dive underwater to catch prey eat different kinds of fish. Some seabirds rely on tuna and dolphins to nudge fish up to the surface.

Conservation Issues 7. At some time in their lives, all seabirds must leave their ocean world and return to land to breed. They usually breed in large colonies along rocky coasts or sandy beaches. This brings them into direct conflict with man and predators. Sadly, humans and predators have destroyed many seabird breeding colonies.

8.Seabirds are not safe at sea either. Thousands of seabirds are killed every year when they get tangled in fishing nets. Oil spills and oil released into the environment are also responsible for killing seabirds.

9.Because so many seabirds are killed every year, people all over the world are working together to save seabirds. For example, Mexico’s state park officials have big plans to protect its seabirds. California is taking part in a statewide effort to protect seabird habitats up and down the coast to save Pacific Coast seabirds. And many Caribbean organizations, communities, and individuals are working hard to protect seabirds that live and nest on Caribbean islands, such as Jamaica and Puerto Rico.

1. Male and female penguins take turns sitting on the eggs and taking care of the babies.

2. Penguins that eat krill have pink poop. Penguins that eat fish have white poop.

3. Penguins are excellent swimmers, but they can’t fly.

4. Gulls make nests by making a soft spot in the sand near grass, rocks, or logs for protection.

5. Gulls are the state bird of Utah even though Utah is not near any oceans.

6. Most seabirds have the same mate for life.

7. If seabirds had an Olympics, the gold medal for long distance flight would go to the Arctic Tern. Terns fly round trip from the Arctic to the Antarctic and back each year. This is a total distance of over 22,000 miles.

8. The Sea of Cortez is home to the smallest seabird in the world, the Least Storm Petrel which weighs 1 ounce.

9. Sea birds have their own natural built-in sunglasses. Their eyes contain special red drops of oil. This oil acts as a sun filter to help with the glare from the sea and sand.

10. An albatross served as an airplane in the Disney movie, The Rescuers.

11. The albatross is covered with white, black, brown, red, or yellow feathers. The feathers were used for decoration of hats in the past.

12. An albatross has excellent eyesight and sense of smell. It can find prey even in the dark.

13. An albatross can fly 40 miles per hour. It can fly a long period of time without rest.

14. The stormy petrel is the mascot of Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia.

15. Around 90 percent of breeding storm petrels are found in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the Faroe Islands (between Norway and Iceland).

16. Storm petrels are brown-black or gray and have white rear ends.

17. Penguins appear the most often in movies. Of all the seabirds, they might be the most lovable.

18. Emperor penguins are the deepest divers. They can reach depths of 870 feet.

19. Most seabirds have webbed feet. This helps them move on land and in the water.

20. Many seabirds migrate thousands of miles a year. They cross the equator and, in some cases, circle the globe.