July 2010

Three million years ago North and South America joined, leading to new migration routes and explaining species diversity today. ScienceDaily Senescence and dominance in roosters ScienceDaily On the polymorphism of Oystercatcher bills Tetrapod Zoologist (Blog) How do Oystercatchers learn how to forage and keep alive Greg Laden's Blog Tags reveal puffin food 'hotspot' BBC News An interesting article by Corina Logan (PhD student) on corvid social behaviour NewScientist I Wouldn't Mate With You If You Were the Last Finch on Earth? (blog post on a PLoS ONE paper) Mike the Mad Biologist (Blog) Egyptian vultures use twigs to gather wool for their nests NewScientist Avian empathy Living the Scientific Life (Blog) Sensitive males: inbreeding depression in an endangered bird ScienceDaily Ostrich feathers useful for Ostrich (and dinosaur) bipedal locomotion ScienceDaily Effect of Fire on Birds Evaluated in the Pyrenees ScienceDaily In Zebra finches, muscles controlling male vocal organs are crucial to sing over a wide range of frequencies; females only make short, lower-frequency calls. ScienceDaily Concern over plans to downgrade Indian national park BBC News Citizen Science: Birders Contribute Valuable Data on Invasive Plant Species (Ecological Applications paper) ScienceDaily