We don't know how well threatened species fight off bird flu—but we need to
Lethal bird flu is now spreading in Australia. This is bad news for many native species.
Plants & Animals
Aug 6, 2026
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Page 4: Research news on Birds (class)
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.
First complete songbird genome exposes missing genes and chromosome architecture
The zebra finch is one of the best-studied songbirds and a model for understanding the biology and neuroscience of vocal learning. Now, researchers have produced the first complete genome assembly of the species, revealing ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 6, 2026
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One of the world's only two complete dodo skulls reveals new clues about the extinct bird
Only two complete dodo skulls are known to exist anywhere in the world: one at the Natural History Museum Denmark and one at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History. The specimen housed in Copenhagen has been preserved ...
Paleontology & Fossils
Aug 5, 2026
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Were there tiny dinosaurs? New study explores one of evolution's biggest mysteries
Dinosaurs are famous for being big, from the towering Tyrannosaurus rex to the colossal Apatosaurus. But a new study published today in the journal Evolution by scientists at the American Museum of Natural History and Princeton ...
Evolution
Aug 5, 2026
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Ways to help protect Australia's birds and mammals from bird flu
The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu has now spread from migratory birds to infect resident Australian birds. Clusters of dead birds have been found in several locations. The virus will inevitably infect other wildlife, most ...
Ecology
Aug 5, 2026
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Egg oiling offers a targeted way to reduce raven predation on vulnerable prey
Common ravens are intelligent omnivores that regularly consume the eggs and young of nesting birds, and their populations are boosted by human-provided food and nesting resources. This has resulted in elevated predation by ...
Ecology
Aug 5, 2026
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DNA study uncovers deeper losses across Hawaiian honeycreeper family tree
Smithsonian researchers have identified the genetic relationships among all Hawaiian honeycreeper species known to have existed—and subsequently faced major losses—since the arrival of Europeans to the islands.
Evolution
Aug 4, 2026
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Indigenous-led conservation helps save endangered cockatoo
An Indigenous community in Indonesia has found a way to protect one of the world's rarest cockatoos without abandoning a centuries-old sacred tradition, according to new research led by The Australian National University ...
Plants & Animals
Aug 4, 2026
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Some tropical butterflies live surprisingly long lives. Is it their high‑protein diet?
Butterflies are charismatic, colorful and cherished around the world. One of the most diverse groups of insects, with more than 19,000 described species, they inspire international organizations such as the North American ...
Evolution
Aug 3, 2026
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Falls in whale sightings, rare seabirds appearing—is something unusual happening in the Southern Ocean?
In late June, whale watchers in southwest Western Australia sounded the alarm. They had seen far fewer humpback whales at a time when they normally migrate up from the Southern Ocean to calve and feed. Numbers were 60% below ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 31, 2026
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