News tagged with mockingbird

Size matters: Length of songbirds' playlists linked to brain region proportions

Call a bird "birdbrained" and they may call "fowl." Cornell University researchers have proven that the capacity for learning in birds is not linked to overall brain size, but to the relative size and proportion of their ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Sep 19, 2011 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (3) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

Mockingbirds, no bird brains, can recognize a face in a crowd

(PhysOrg.com) -- The birds are watching. They know who you are. And they will attack. Nope, not Hitchcock. It's science.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 18, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (12) | comments 5

'Alien' eggs benefit mockingbirds

(PhysOrg.com) -- Mockingbirds rarely remove the ‘alien’ eggs parasitic cowbirds lay in their nests because keeping them dilutes the risk of their own eggs being attacked.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created Dec 07, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

A hitchhiker's guide to the Galapagos: co-evolution of Galapagos mockingbirds and their parasites

Along with the famous finches the Galapagos mockingbirds had a great influence on Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. Now, 176 years later, three of the four mockingbird species are among the rarest birds ...

Biology / Evolution

created Oct 03, 2011 | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

I know you, bad guy! Magpies recognize humans

Most people who have had the experience of having pet animals in their houses have the gut feeling that the animals can "recognize" us. They seem to recognize our faces, our voices and our smell. One way or another, they ...

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 13, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 27

UF study finds cats No. 1 predator to urban mockingbird nests

A new University of Florida study shows cats are the dominant predator to mockingbird eggs and nestlings in urban areas, prompting conservationists to urge pet owners to keep felines indoors at night.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 05, 2011 | popularity 1 / 5 (1) | comments 0

When climate is iffy, birds sing a more elaborate tune

Why is it that some birds sing such elaborate songs and others not so much? A new study published online on May 21st in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, says that climate patterns might be part of the answer.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 21, 2009 | popularity 3 / 5 (1) | comments 0