Birds (class Aves) are a clade of endothermic, egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, a lightweight but strong skeleton with pneumatic bones, and forelimbs modified as wings. They possess a highly efficient respiratory system with air sacs and unidirectional airflow, a four-chambered heart, and high metabolic rates supporting sustained activity and, in most species, powered flight. Reproduction is oviparous with hard-shelled, calcium-rich eggs and extensive parental care. Birds exhibit diverse morphologies and ecological strategies, yet share key synapomorphies such as feathers and a furcula, reflecting their origin within theropod dinosaurs.
Every year, billions of migratory birds connect the world's continents, oceans and ecosystems as they undertake epic journeys between their foraging habitats and breeding grounds.
Ecology
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Scientists have known for years that birds like geese and ibises gain an aerodynamic advantage from flying in a "V" formation. Now, researchers from Brown University have provided new insights into the nature of that advantage.
Plants & Animals
Jul 21, 2026
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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced the reclassification of the Aʻeo, or Hawaiian stilt (Himantopus mexicanus knudseni), from endangered to threatened under the Endangered Species Act, a rare and hopeful milestone ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 21, 2026
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On a pristine Rhode Island beach teeming with noisy seabirds, a group of biologists armed with nets sneak up on a pair of American oystercatcher chicks.
Ecology
Jul 20, 2026
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University of Michigan researchers have used an AI tool to demonstrate that birds in the group Passeriformes evolved in rapid evolutionary bursts and that these bursts frequently coincided with climate shifts throughout Earth's ...
Evolution
Jul 20, 2026
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If you've driven down two-lane highways in rural parts of North Florida recently, you may have noticed a spate of new signs that designate the grassy knolls bordering the asphalt as wildflower areas. The signs likely feel ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 18, 2026
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Europe's great cormorant has recovered from near extinction to overabundance in half a century, stoking a long-running debate over population control between fishers troubled by its voracious appetite and conservationists.
Ecology
Jul 18, 2026
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Mosquitoes are widely known for transmitting diseases such as malaria and dengue fever to humans, but less is known about the diseases they can transmit to wild birds. The Plasmodium parasite that causes avian malaria is ...
Ecology
Jul 17, 2026
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Bones preserved in underwater caves offer a rare and powerful window into the past—but until now, researchers have had limited tools to understand how the remains of extinct megafauna and other animals came to rest in their ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Jul 15, 2026
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A sweeping new Cal Poly study of North American birds reveals that environmental change does not affect all species equally and that a bird's traits can explain whether populations rise or fall as local conditions change.
Plants & Animals
Jul 15, 2026
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