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.
Darin McNeil, Ph.D., an assistant professor of wildlife management in the University of Kentucky Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment, is partnering with the University of Pittsburgh and others to help ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 15, 2026
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Few animals put on a show quite like manakins. In the rainforests of Central and South America, males of these small tropical birds, with strikingly bright plumage, often gather at communal display sites (leks), where they ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 14, 2026
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Pets form an important part of many people's lives, providing meaningful companionship. However, our pets can sometimes also be a source of unwelcome pathogens and diseases, particularly if they frequently roam outdoors.
Plants & Animals
Jun 13, 2026
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Sealed within an eggshell, how can chicks prepare for the world into which they are about to hatch, with no obvious direct communication channel across the shell? Adult zebra finches produce distinctive high-pitched warning ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 11, 2026
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From melodic morning choruses to territorial songs that echo through forests and grasslands, birds rely on vocalizations to communicate, attract mates and defend valuable habitat. For songbirds, these vocal displays are not ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 10, 2026
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Lesser black-backed gulls from the colony on the Dutch island of Neeltje Jans appear to avoid the wind farm off the Zeeland coast, with the exception of some males. NIOZ ecologist Rosemarie Kentie and her colleagues suspected ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 9, 2026
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Monitoring the eggs of wild birds like the bearded vulture and the imperial eagle over a decade reveals the accumulation and persistence of environmental pollutants in ecosystems. At first glance, a wild bird's egg represents ...
Ecology
Jun 9, 2026
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Conservationists analyze overwhelming volumes of ecological data in their work. For example, they might need to process decades of weather data or the movements of millions of insects. Up until now, these scientists and decision ...
Ecology
Jun 9, 2026
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Inequality is not unique to human groups and societies. Individuals with relatively little power possess a variety of behavioral strategies to counterbalance or regulate power differences. In humans, these strategies include ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 9, 2026
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Researchers in Germany have found that solar panels on rewetted peatland provide a unique habitat for bird species along with generating green energy and potentially locking up carbon. Installing solar panels on rewetted ...
Ecology
Jun 8, 2026
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