The Cretaceous, a geological period that lasted from about 145 to 66 million years ago, is the third and final portion of the Mesozoic Era, as well as the longest. In the early Cretaceous, the continents were in very different positions than they are today. There was a major landmass, a supercontinent called Pangaea. By …
In many parts of the world, once-forested areas have been broken up into patches, surrounded by farmland, roads, railroad tracks, and urban areas. There might be 60 acres of forest adjacent to a wheat field on one side and corn fields on the other three. This is especially true in the eastern U.S. but it …
Previously I described what it takes to do ornithological research, culminating in, hopefully, a published paper. Where would you publish this? There are a number of places, but peer-reviewed research is typically published in a format called a journal like The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, Australian Field Ornithology, Journal of Avian Biology, Journal of Ornithology, …
Parthenogenesis means birth without fertilization. In other words, a female gives birth to offspring without having been impregnated by a male. This phenomenon occurs normally in some plants and a number of invertebrates like nematodes, some scorpions and mites, aphids, some bees, and parasitic wasps. It also happens among all vertebrates except mammals – yes, …
Bird populations have been declining over the past half century. Perhaps 40 percent of North America’s birds have disappeared during that time – over 3.5 billion birds! According to the IUCN Red List, 23 percent of the world’s birds are threatened or near-threatened, and 44 percent have declining populations. On field trips I used to …
Contrary to popular belief and studies on some hummingbird species, hummingbirds apparently have an active sense of smell. We have known for some time that New World Vultures have an excellent sense of smell, as do many seabirds (Procellariformes). This is due in part to their large olfactory bulbs-rounded mass of tissue that contains several …
A recent study speculates that migratory birds have lighter colored feathers because they reduce the risk of overheating (Kaspar Delhey, James Dale, Mihai Valcu, and Bart Kempenaers. Migratory birds are lighter coloured. Current Biology, 2021). They say “We found across nearly all species of birds, migratory species tend to be lighter colored than non-migratory species. …
Research in ornithology is not just a willy-nilly collection of observations while walking through the woods. How does one start a research project? First, you have to develop a hypothesis – a question you would like to answer. Let’s suppose you are curious about the prevalence of partial albinism (leucistic plumage) in House Sparrows. What …
Just returned from a week in New York City. Of course, the only birds I saw in Manhattan were the usual suspects: Eurasian Starlings, Rock Pigeons, and House Sparrows, all well adapted to urban life. Why is it they are so good at surviving the crowded urban jungle? Yes, a number of other species are …
According to The Illustrated Book of Poultry Queen Victoria was captivated by watching her seven chickens in their custom enclosure. While royalty are not known for admiring poultry as do farmers, in 1842 Queen Victoria started what would become an international craze for fancy chickens, just because they were beautiful to look at. These were Cochin chickens or …
