Sparrows change their tune to be heard in noisy cities

Sparrows in San Francisco's Presidio district changed their tune to soar above the increasing cacophony of car horns and engine rumbles, details new George Mason University research in the April edition of Animal Behaviour.

Elaborate plumage due to testosterone?

(PhysOrg.com) -- In many bird species males have a more elaborate plumage than females. This elaborate plumage is often used to signal body condition, to intimidate rivals or to attract potential mates. In many cases plumage ...

Females choose mates for their personalities, study shows

Adventurous females choose mates with similar personalities, regardless of the male's appearance and other assets, according to research led by the University of Exeter. This is the first study to show that the non-sexual ...

How birds prepare for war

(PhysOrg.com) -- Just as human soldiers show greater solidarity when entering combat zones, new research from the University of Bristol has demonstrated that birds also increase their affiliative behaviour in situations where ...

Pigeon 'backpacks' track flock voting (w/ Video)

(PhysOrg.com) -- Pigeon flocks are guided by a flexible system of leadership in which almost every member gets a ‘vote’ but the votes of high-ranking birds carry more weight, a new study has shown.

To the Antarctic or Brazil for new feathers

(PhysOrg.com) -- Not only land birds, but also some seabirds, cover enormous distances during migration: the sooty shearwater, for example, circumnavigates the earth one and a half times on its travels. Despite this, relatively ...

Why don't robins get fat?

(PhysOrg.com) -- New research by the School of Biosciences is shedding light on the reasons why the European robin doesn’t get fat -even though they are feeding for much longer.

We're off then: The evolution of bat migration

(PhysOrg.com) -- Not just birds, but also a few species of bats face a long journey every year. Researchers at Princeton University in the U.S. and at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Radolfzell, Germany studied ...

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