Franklins Gull (Leucophaeus pipixcan) Science Article 1 abstract Carotenoid pigments produce the red, orange, and yellow plumage of many birds. Carotenoidcontainingfeathers are typically rich in color and displayed by all adult members of the species. In many gulls andterns, however, an unusual light pink coloring (or flush) to the normally white plumage can be found […]
THE SONG OF THE FOX SPARROW
Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca) Science Article 2 abstract The study of the song of the fox sparrow is a highly tantalizing pursuit owing to the bird’s brief stay, provoking habits of silence and reluctance to sing in full voice. THEODORE CLARKE SMITH, The Ohio Naturalist Vol. 3, No. 6 Download article download full text (pdf)
RECENT EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY OF THEFOX SPARROWS (GENUS: PASSERELLA)
Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca) Science Article 1 abstract On the basis of plumage coloration and mitochondrial DNA variation, four maingroups are recognized within the Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca): the red group (iliaca, RE),sooty group (unalaschcensis, SO), thick-billed (megarhyncha, TB), and slate-colored (schistacea,SC). To establish phylogenetic relationships among those four groups, we analyzed 2119 basepairs of […]
Natural death of a Fox Sparrow
Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca) Science Article 4 abstract In ‘The Condor,’ September 1924, Laurence M. Huey describes the natural death of an Audubon’s Warbler (Dendroica auduboni) under the title ‘The Natural End of a Bird’s Life.’ Huey describes the bird as ‘ascending a vertical rose stem in a peculiar spiral manner’ and otherwise conducting itself […]
GEOGRAPHIC VARIATION IN ONTOGENY OF THE FOX SPARROW
Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca) Science Article 3 abstract Ontogeny of two morphologically differentiated populations of Fox Sparrows (PassereNail iaca) was compared to reveal the developmental bases of adult morphologicaldifferences. Growth of tarsus, wing, bill, and tail length relative to body mass was compared between the two populations to determine if geographic variation in adults results […]
GEOGRAPHIC VARIATION AND SPECIES LIMITS IN MIDDLE AMERICAN WOODNYMPHS (THALURANIA)
Fork-tailed Woodnymph (Thalurania furcata) Science Article 1 abstract We analyzed geographic variation in morphology and plumage coloration in male woodnymphs of the genus Thalurunia in Middle America and northwestern South America. Morphometric characters distinguish the disjunct western Mexican populations from populations to the south. Three groups are distinguished by discrete plumage coloration characters. We propose […]
Unusual bathing behavior of the Fork-tailed Flycatcher in Colombia
Fork-tailed Flycatcher (Tyrannus savana) Science Article 1 abstract While conducting a crocodile (Crocorlylus sp.) census along the Tomo River, Vichada, Colombia, I observed Fork-tailed Flycatchers (Tyrarznus savana) engaged in unusual group behavior. Six birds were perched 10 m up in a dead tree at water’s edge on the south bank of the river. The birds […]
Colonial and single breeding in fieldfares, Turdus pilaris L.:a comparison of nesting success in early and late broods
Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris) Science Article 2 abstract Pairs of fieldfares breed singly or in colonies. Their breeding season was subdivided into an early part, when the trees were still leafless, and a late part, when the trees had leaves. Early colonial pairs had a significantly higher nesting success than single pairs. However, amongst late broods […]
Nest defence strategies in the Fieldfare Turdus pilaris: the responses on an avian and a mammalian predator.
Fieldfare (Turdus pilaris) Science Article 1 abstract The Fieldfare Turdus pilaris, a medium-sized passerine, is aggressive in nest defence and its use of f ces may be detrimental to avian but not to mammalian predators. The birds breed either solitarily or in colonies, the nesting pattern in subalpine forests is apparently dependent on the abundance […]
Fluctuations related to rainfall in richness and abundance of birds of steppic Mediterranean habitats
Fan-tailed Warbler (Cisticola juncidis) Science Article 1 abstract The existence of interannual variations in the richness and abundance of bird species breeding in pseudo-steppic Mediterranean areas is analysed and related to the important fluctuations that take place in rainfall, which in turn deeply influence vegetation growth. The hypothesis of food limitation as a key factor […]