Posts Tagged ‘birds’
Science & Technology - Mar 24, 2010 12:52 - 0 Comments
Identifying birds by sniff, not song
INDIANA U (US)—Two recently diverged populations of a southern California songbird produce unique odors, suggesting smell could contribute to the reproductive isolation that accompanies the origin of new bird species. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Mar 23, 2010 16:07 - 1 Comment
Will sea birds suffer under EU ban?
U. LEEDS (UK)—A proposed European Union ban on throwing unwanted fish overboard from commercial boats in the North Sea could put the survival of a sea bird at risk. (more…)
Science & Technology - Feb 26, 2010 12:19 - 2 Comments
Antioxidants give birds breeding edge
U. COLORADO (US)—North American barn swallows outperform their peers in reproduction by maintaining a positive balance of antioxidants, found naturally in plant pigments—and in health food stores around the world. (more…)
Science & Technology - Feb 18, 2010 16:17 - 1 Comment
Bird brains need tutors to learn to tweet
RUTGERS (US)—Songbirds, like humans, learn vocalizations by imitating their caregivers in infancy. New research shows songbirds need experience with tutoring—either from parents or surrogates—to develop a key brain function related to singing. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Feb 9, 2010 11:55 - 0 Comments
New ‘Flowerpecker’ spotted in Borneo
LEEDS (UK)—A new species of bird has been seen—but only once—in the Bornean rainforest. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Feb 5, 2010 12:10 - 0 Comments
Sizable snail threatens endangered bird
U. FLORIDA (US)—A huge South American snail is wreaking havoc on its predator, the snail kite, an endangered Everglades bird of prey. (more…)
Science & Technology - Jan 22, 2010 18:35 - 0 Comments
Alfred Hitchcock meets ‘Jurassic Park’
U. KANSAS—As if the infamous Velociraptor wasn’t vicious enough. A new discovery reveals that a closely related cousin killed by injecting shock-inducing venom into its prey. (more…)
Science & Technology - Jan 15, 2010 16:36 - 5 Comments
Airport technology tracks flying birds
U. ILLINOIS—Wildlife managers now have access to real-time displays of bird activity on and around Seattle-Tacoma International airport thanks to a recently deployed bird tracking system. (more…)
Science & Technology - Dec 18, 2009 12:09 - 3 Comments
Flying micro-machines mimic hummingbirds
U. BUFFALO (US)—The secret to the flight of the hummingbird and other tiny birds and insects lies in the looping, swirling flow of air, called a vortex, that their flapping wings create. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Dec 4, 2009 11:22 - 1 Comment
Birds shout out to friends and enemies
UC DAVIS (US)—Birds’ alarm calls serve both to alert other birds to danger and to warn off predators. And some birds can pull a ventriloquist’s trick, singing from the side of their mouths. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Nov 17, 2009 11:57 - 0 Comments
Bird vibrates feathers to hum love song
CORNELL (US)—Four years ago, a researcher reported a bizarre example of sexual selection in a rare South American bird: The male attracts the female by rubbing specialized wing feathers—more than 100 cycles per second—to create a high hum, similar to a sustained violin note. (more…)
Health & Medicine - Oct 28, 2009 18:17 - 5 Comments
Human, bird scent drives mosquitoes wild
UC DAVIS (US)—Scientists have identified the dominant odor produced by humans and birds that attracts blood-feeding Culex mosquitoes, known to transmit West Nile virus and other serious diseases. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Sep 15, 2009 17:27 - 2 Comments
Birds fly the coop when climate shifts
A low elevation species, the Bullock’s Oriole, or Icterus bullockii, responded to climate change by tracking precipitation. (Credit: Morgan Tingley)
Earth & Environment - Aug 11, 2009 4:00 - 0 Comments
Wind energy that’s for the birds
“Conducting this research will help the wind industry make informed, science-based decisions about where future wind energy projects can be built and how they can be operated to minimize the impact on migrating wildlife, while still providing much-needed alternative energy,” explains John Fitzpatrick, director of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
Earth & Environment - Jul 24, 2009 14:43 - 0 Comments
Noisy nests not for the birds
“Understanding how birds respond to noise, especially birds with critical links to ecosystems, are crucial in maintaining biodiversity in growing areas of landscapes disturbed by urban clamor,” says lead author Clinton Francis. (Western Tanager pictured above. Courtesy: Clinton Francis)
Earth & Environment - Jul 10, 2009 11:50 - 0 Comments
Pairing radar, acoustics to track birds near wind farms
This animation illustrates the use of a network of surveillance weather radar to record nocturnal migrating birds, bats, and insects in the continental U.S. from sunset to sunrise Oct. 1, 2008. The blocky green, yellow, and red patterns, especially visible on the east coast, represent precipitation; but within an hour after sunset, radar picks up biological activity, as seen in the widening blue and green circles spreading from the east across the country. The birds, bats, and insects take off, fly past, and get sampled by the radar beam. Note, the black areas on the map do not represent places without birds, necessarily, but rather places where radar does not sample.
Science & Technology - Apr 3, 2009 8:46 - 0 Comments
Feather color linked to structures similar to beer foam
YALE (US)—Most colors in nature—from the color of our skin to the green of trees—are produced by pigments. But the bright blue feathers found in many birds, such as Bluebirds and Blue Jays, are instead produced by nanostructures. Under an electron microscope, these tiny structures—similar to beer foam—look like sponges. (more…)
Science & Technology - Mar 20, 2009 11:32 - 0 Comments
Feather color detected in 30 million-year-old bird fossil
YALE (US)–Scientists have discovered traces of organic material in fossilized bird feathers from 30 millions years ago. Yale University researchers say the material appears to be remnants of pigments that once gave birds their color, opening up the possibility of pinpointing the original hue of ancient birds and their ancestors, the dinosaurs. (more…)
