Mallards—the familiar green-headed ducks of city parks—are one of a group of closely related waterfowl species, many of which are far less common. Interbreeding with Mallards can threaten the genetic distinctiveness of ...
Ecology
Sep 6, 2017
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Before habitat degradation from impacts like grazing begins to cause population declines, the first response by wildlife usually comes in the form of behavioral changes—for example, switching their diets in response to ...
Ecology
Aug 30, 2017
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2
Wind energy development in the Great Plains is increasing, spurring concern about its potential effects on grassland birds, the most rapidly declining avian group in North America. However, a new study from The Condor: Ornithological ...
Ecology
Aug 9, 2017
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In 1966, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist named Chan Robbins launched an international program designed to measure changes in bird populations using volunteers recruited to count birds on pre-set routes along country ...
Ecology
Jul 26, 2017
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2
Sea-level rise may be a big problem for saltmarsh birds, but so is predation, and birds sometimes find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place: They can place their nests lower in the vegetation to avoid predators, ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 12, 2017
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2
Nesting in cavities provides birds with some protection from predators—but it isn't foolproof. A new study from The Auk: Ornithological Advances explores how Poland's cavity-nesting Marsh Tits deal with predator attacks ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 12, 2017
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2
Invasive parasites are a biological oxymoron. And yet, they are in our backyards! A new study analyzes the case of a brood parasitic bird, the Pin-tailed Whydah (Vidua macroura), and its recent spread into the Americas.
Ecology
Jun 28, 2017
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2
Influences outside the breeding season can matter a lot for the population health of migratory birds, but it's tough to track what happens once species scatter across South America for the winter months. A study from The ...
Ecology
Jun 21, 2017
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Male birds tend to be better singers than females—but does the basis for this difference lie in the brain or in the syrinx, the bird equivalent of our larynx? The researchers behind a new study from The Auk: Ornithological ...
Plants & Animals
Jun 14, 2017
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92
We're all familiar with flightless birds: ostriches, emus, penguins—and ducks? Ducks and geese, part of a bird family called the anatids, have been especially prone to becoming flightless over the course of evolutionary ...
Evolution
Jun 7, 2017
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