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Tag: "birds" at biology news

Can biological traits predict diversification rates in birds?

...rk Campus) identifies the two biological traits in birds that account for most of the variation: dispersal and feeding generalization. "Few studies have looked at ecological traits such as dispersal and feeding generalization as explanations for variation in rate of diversification, perhaps because these ...

Bird flu study highlights need to vaccinate flocks effectively

...the spread of avian flu quite simply because fewer birds die. The result is increasing amounts of bird flu...ard to protect more than about 90 per cent of the birds in any given flock, and protection levels are usually much lower than this. The new study estimates ...

Scientists aim to thwart use of flu as bioweapon

...ths in the United States alone each year. And wild birds infected with the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu are gradually broadening the scope of that disease. This week in Rochester, scientists are discussing ways to better understand the flu and also how to prevent the possibility that terrorists could som...

It's all in the genes

...ve in the soil or eat the leaves, which affect the birds that feed on the insects, and so on. In the July issue of Nature Reviews Genetics and the May issue of Evolution, Whitham and fellow researchers discuss how this phenotype is heritable on an ecosystem level. That is, the progeny of a tree are likely...

Northern birds are fatter!

"The further birds migrate north for the summer, the faster they put ...niversity, Canada) who has been tracking migrating birds for several years. "This research may have implications for the designation of protected areas which...

Crucial site for endangered frogs and birds saved

...stopover point for declining neotropical migratory birds that breed in the United States and Canada, such a...ve. "Such quick action to save several species of birds and amphibians from extinction shows the importance of conservation partnerships such as the Allianc...

UF scientists trace origin of shark's electric sense

...t the University of Chicago. Mammals, reptiles and birds lost the sense over time, as did most fish alive today. But in sharks and a few other species, such as sturgeons and lampreys, electrosensory capability endured. "Most fish you see today have large eyes," Coates said. "But sharks arepredators that...

Not just the birds

...way rats (Rattus norvegicus) reduced the number of birds nesting on the islands. Arctic foxes were introdu...t the effects of their presence are still visible; birds have been slow to return to the islands to nest. The region is its own experimental test site. The...

Scientists discover dozens of new species in 'Lost World' of western New Guinea

...team captured the first photos ever seen of exotic birds such as a male Berlepsch's Six-Wired Bird of Paradise (Parotia berlepschi). It also found a new large mammal for Indonesia ?the Golden-mantled Tree Kangaroo (Dendrolagus pulcherrimus), formerly known from only a single mountain in neighboring Papua N...

Avian flu transmission to humans may be higher than thought

...fforts by the government to eliminate the diseased birds from flocks. "In addition to being an important source of income, poultry is kept by many rural households for subsistence farming. The current epidemic in poultry is thus not only a public health problem but also an economic drawback for the many ...

Zebra finches remember songs dad sang

... own species and those of other species, the young birds pick their own species. "If the processes of learning in young birds and human babies have formal similarities, which it now seems they do, then studying the songbird br...

New brain hormone puts brakes on reproduction

...ontinue their investigation of the role of GnIH in birds and mammals, with the assistance of postdoctoral fellow Takayoshi Ubuka, formerly of Tsutsui's laboratory in Japan, and Tsutsui's Hiroshima University colleagues, Kazuhiko Inoue and Kazuyoshi Ukena. Also coauthors of the PNAS paper were Dan Feng Mei ...

Avian influenza virus in mammals spreads beyond the site of infection to other organ systems

...ndemic spread. This virus is highly contagious in birds and spreads easily due to the agricultural and migratory nature of the bird species infected, including poultry, water fowl, and other migratory species (See commentary by Brown for more information). While spread of avian influenza from bird to man...

Animal brains 'hard-wired' to recognize predator's foot movements, Queen's study suggests

...ector'," he says. "Snakes, insects and spiders, or birds can generate pathological reactions not observed in response to 'normal' animals." ...

Minor mutations in avian flu virus increase chances of human infection

...an virus from receptors in the intestinal tract of birds to the respiratory tract of humans. These mutations, the study noted, were already "known in [some human influenza] viruses to increase binding for these receptors." The study was published on March 16, 2006 by ScienceXpress, the advance online vers...

Sea coral's trick helps scientists tag proteins

...at it can switch shades at the body temperature of birds and mammals, which are popular research models. Its usefulness is further enhanced by the fact that it stays red for long-term protein tracking, Sergey Lukyanov explained. Dendra is the latest addition to the growing family of photoactivatable fluor...

Attractive birds more immune against bird flu

...uenza. The white spot is also attractive to female birds searching for a mate. Evolutionary biologists have long attempted to explain why individuals of a species differ in appearance and why the choice of a mate is influenced by behaviour and appearance features that cannot reasonably be thought to have...

When mice choose mates, experience counts

...the choices of other females is well documented in birds and fish, but had not been documented for any mamm...d location, or presence of danger. Specifically in birds and fish, 'public information' has been shown play a role in when and what to eat and with whom to m...

Spring migration of pink-footed geese under threat

...y are threatening to scale up efforts to scare the birds off their fields, which the geese use as a staging post on their migration north, unless they are compensated for the damage to crops and grassland. Together with colleagues in Denmark and Norway, Klaassen used data from ringed geese collected betwe...

Horseshoe crab decline threatens shorebird species

...e documented a reduction in the number of red knot birds throughout the Delaware Bay tied to a decline in horseshoe crabs. The research will be reported in The Journal of Wildlife Management, in the article, "Horseshoe Crab Eggs Determine Red Knot Distribution in Delaware Bay Habitats," by Virginia Tech f...

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