In these uplands feather mosses create a microhabitat for cyanobacteria which fix a modest amount of nitrogen that mostly stays on site in soils trees and shrubs.
The three-year study of blue tits which also involved researchers from the University of California Davis USA and the University of Glasgow showed that mothers with more UV-reflectant crown feathers did not lay more eggs
Previous studies have shown that male blue tits prefer mates that exhibit highly UV-reflectant crown feathers.
UV plumage can signal maternal quality in blue tits so a male choosing a brightly coloured female will gain a good mother for his chicks and a less stressed partner.
In blue tits (Cyanistes Caeruleus) both sexes exhibit bright UV-reflectant crown feathers. The birds are socially monogamous with the female solely incubating the eggs
The researchers looked at the relative UV reflectance of the crown feathers of female blue tits
Also the mothers with more UV-reflectant crowns were highly successful fledging up to eight more chicks than females with drabber feathers.
seven-year study findswind power development does not ruffle the feathers of greater prairie chicken populations according to the results of a seven-year study from a Kansas State university ecologist and his team.
100 of our Planet's Most Amazing New Species (NY Plume 2013. For decades we have averaged 18000 species discoveries per year
and has feathers then it's probably a duck he said. The work was supported by the National aeronautics and space administration.
Some have bulbous crests long fleshy wattles or Elvis-worthy pompadours in addition to electric blue deep purple or screaming orange feathers.
Sexual selection appears to have played a role in the evolution of non-plumage gender differences in some cotinga species. In one case the Screaming Piha the males
That means male-female plumage difference alone is not evidence for sexual selection because sexual selection is also driving other traits such as voice and behavior.
The instrument in the trunk quickly detects a large plume of methane emanating from the landfill.
A NASA aircraft soon appears overhead carrying a prototype satellite instrument that records high-resolution images of methane that scientists can use to identify gas plumes.
and without plumagethe magnificent plumage of the peacock may not be quite the sacrifice to love that it appears to be University of Leeds researchers have discovered.
what price male birds pay for carrying the spectacular iridescent feathers they use in displays to attract females.
These feathers weigh about 300g and can exceed 1. 5m so it's expected that the male birds would be making a significant sacrifice in their flight performance for being attractive--possibly giving up their lives
He filmed the take-offs of birds carrying full plumage in 3d and then filmed the same birds taking off without their trains.
Dr Askew pointed out that the feathers might adversely affect flight stability and the birds'ability to run.
Just creating the ornate plumage is a costly exercise; male birds invest about 3%of their daily metabolic energy budget in train growth.
and hind limb feathers wing membranes in front of its elbow half-moon shaped wrist-like bones bird-like perching feet a tail with short anterior vertebrae
The researchers specifically note the primitive elongated feathers on the forelimbs and hind limbs. This suggests that Scansoriopteryx is a basal
which can indicate diet compositionin order to reconstruct eagles'diet by analysing the isotopic composition of their feathers first authors had to characterise the isotopic composition of Bonelli's Eagle main preys in Catalonia.
and stable isotope analysis. The study showed that the isotopic analysis of feathers allows inferring individual species'diet during the breeding period something that is not possible by using pellet.
Hawaiian honeycreepers infested with feather lice birds in Puerto rico afflicted by Philornis flies and the endangered Florida scrub jay parasitized by fleas.
#Birds of all feathers and global flu diversitya group of international scientists have completed the first global inventory of flu strains in birds by reviewing more than 50 published studies
but still too young to have grown waterproof feathers downy penguin chicks exposed to drenching rain can struggle
or more most have enough juvenile plumage to protect them. Once chicks die parents do not lay additional eggs that season.
#Fur and feathers keep animals warm by scattering lightin work that has major implications for improving the performance of building insulation scientists at the University of Namur in Belgium and the University of Hassan
and feathers keep animals warm primarily by trapping a layer of air that slows thermal conduction says Simonis.
and barbed feathers could be the primary mechanism for the thermal insulation properties of fur and feathers.
With the right structure fur and feathers can generate efficient thermal insulation in the far infrared range
I visited the Feather Identification Lab at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural history, Dr. Carla Dove pulled out a stack of manila folders thicker than a phone book,
Some bags contained whole feathers, others contained specimens that looked liked specks of dirt, but were in fact bird remains.
with a focus on the microstructure of feathers. It didn t take her long to realize that the work performed in this little lab is a big help to the military, the aviation industry and of course, the birds.
If we have a feather, we can take it out to the collection the 150-year-old Smithsonian bird collection,
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