Download or read book Avian Evolution written by Gerald Mayr and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-09-08 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Knowledge of the evolutionary history of birds has much improved in recent decades. Fossils from critical time periods are being described at unprecedented rates and modern phylogenetic analyses have provided a framework for the interrelationships of the extant groups. This book gives an overview of the avian fossil record and its paleobiological significance, and it is the only up-to-date textbook that covers both Mesozoic and more modern-type Cenozoic birds in some detail. The reader is introduced to key features of basal avians and the morphological transformations that have occurred in the evolution towards modern birds. An account of the Cenozoic fossil record sheds light on the biogeographic history of the extant avian groups and discusses fossils in the context of current phylogenetic hypotheses. This review of the evolutionary history of birds not only addresses students and established researchers, but it may also be a useful source of information for anyone else with an interest in the evolution of birds and a moderate background in biology and geology.
Download or read book How Birds Evolve written by Douglas J. Futuyma and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2024-10-29 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Why are male birds often so brightly colored? Why do some birds lay more eggs than others? Will bird species adapt to climate change? In How Birds Evolve, Douglas Futuyma invites readers into the amazing world of bird evolution to answer these and other questions. Futuyma's goal in this book is not to offer a comprehensive evolutionary history of birds, but to explore how the processes of evolution produced the distinctive features and behaviors we observe in birds today as well as their impressive diversity. Using one or two birds per chapters as a lens into broader questions, Futuyma explores how a bird's evolutionary history helps us understand the diversity of species and the bird tree of life and how natural selection explains most of the characteristics of birds from how populations adapt to sexual selection and birds' amazing social behavior. Futuyma concludes by discussing the future of birds, particularly patterns of extinction and whether they can adapt to a changing climate. Ultimately, Futuyman wants readers to see that evolutionary biology helps us to better understand birds, and that the reverse is also true: studies of birds have informed almost every aspect of evolutionary biology, from Darwin to today"--
Download or read book The Largest Avian Radiation written by Jon Fjeldså and published by . This book was released on 2020 with total page 445 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Based on the latest phylogenetic studies, this book reveals the remarkable new history of how passerines diversified and dispersed across the entire world.
Download or read book Avian Growth and Development written by J. Matthias Starck and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 1998 with total page 462 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This is the first re-appraisal in 50 years of concepts of development made in birds. This book is a case study in evolutionary diversification of life histories. Although birds have a rather uniform body plan and physiology, they exhibit marked variation in development type, parental care, and rate of growth. Altricial birds are fully dependent on their parents for warmth and nutrition and begin posthatching life in a more or less embryonic condition. At the other extreme, such superprecocial species as the megapodes are independent of all parental care from hatching, and the neonate, able to fly, resembles an adult bird. This book thus attempts to present an integrative perspective of organism biology, ecology, and evolution.
Download or read book The Origin and Evolution of Birds written by Alan Feduccia and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 1999-01-01 with total page 490 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An exploration of all that is known about the origin of birds and of avian flight. It draws on fossil evidence and studies of the structure and biochemistry of living birds to present knowledge and data on avian evolution and to propose a new model of this evolutionary process.
Download or read book Avian Invasions written by Tim M. Blackburn and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2009-06-25 with total page 316 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This text summarizes and synthesizes the literature on introduced bird ecology and evolution. It unravels the insights that the study of exotic birds brings to these research strands.
Download or read book Avian Evolution written by Gerald Mayr and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2016-10-31 with total page 341 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Knowledge of the evolutionary history of birds has much improved in recent decades. Fossils from critical time periods are being described at unprecedented rates and modern phylogenetic analyses have provided a framework for the interrelationships of the extant groups. This book gives an overview of the avian fossil record and its paleobiological significance, and it is the only up-to-date textbook that covers both Mesozoic and more modern-type Cenozoic birds in some detail. The reader is introduced to key features of basal avians and the morphological transformations that have occurred in the evolution towards modern birds. An account of the Cenozoic fossil record sheds light on the biogeographic history of the extant avian groups and discusses fossils in the context of current phylogenetic hypotheses. This review of the evolutionary history of birds not only addresses students and established researchers, but it may also be a useful source of information for anyone else with an interest in the evolution of birds and a moderate background in biology and geology.
Download or read book Avian Immunology written by Bernd Kaspers and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2012-12-02 with total page 456 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The second edition of Avian Immunology provides an up-to-date overview of the current knowledge of avian immunology. From the ontogeny of the avian immune system to practical application in vaccinology, the book encompasses all aspects of innate and adaptive immunity in chickens. In addition, chapters are devoted to the immunology of other commercially important species such as turkeys and ducks, and to ecoimmunology summarizing the knowledge of immune responses in free-living birds often in relation to reproductive success. The book contains a detailed description of the avian innate immune system, encompassing the mucosal, enteric, respiratory and reproductive systems. The diseases and disorders it covers include immunodepressive diseases and immune evasion, autoimmune diseases, and tumors of the immune system. Practical aspects of vaccination are examined as well. Extensive appendices summarize resources for scientists including cell lines, inbred chicken lines, cytokines, chemokines, and monoclonal antibodies. The world-wide importance of poultry protein for the human diet, as well as the threat of avian influenza pandemics like H5N1 and heavy reliance on vaccination to protect commercial flocks makes this book a vital resource. This book provides crucial information not only for poultry health professionals and avian biologists, but also for comparative and veterinary immunologists, graduate students and veterinary students with an interest in avian immunology. - With contributions from 33 of the foremost international experts in the field, this book provides the most up-to-date review of avian immunology so far - Contains a detailed description of the avian innate immune system reviewing constitutive barriers, chemical and cellular responses; it includes a comprehensive review of avian Toll-like receptors - Contains a wide-ranging review of the "ecoimmunology" of free-living avian species, as applied to studies of population dynamics, and reviews methods and resources available for carrying out such research
Download or read book The Ascent of Birds written by John Reilly and published by Pelagic Publishing Ltd. This book was released on 2018-04-16 with total page 369 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When and where did the ancestors of modern birds evolve? What enabled them to survive the meteoric impact that wiped out the dinosaurs? How did these early birds spread across the globe and give rise to the 10,600-plus species we recognise today ― from the largest ratites to the smallest hummingbirds? Based on the latest scientific discoveries and enriched by personal observations, The Ascent of Birds sets out to answer these fundamental questions. The Ascent of Birds is divided into self-contained chapters, or stories, that collectively encompass the evolution of modern birds from their origins in Gondwana, over 100 million years ago, to the present day. The stories are arranged in chronological order, from tinamous to tanagers, and describe the many dispersal and speciation events that underpin the world's 10,600-plus species. Although each chapter is spearheaded by a named bird and focuses on a specific evolutionary mechanism, the narrative will often explore the relevance of such events and processes to evolution in general. The book starts with The Tinamou’s Story, which explains the presence of flightless birds in South America, Africa, and Australasia, and dispels the cherished role of continental drift as an explanation for their biogeography. It also introduces the concept of neoteny, an evolutionary trick that enabled dinosaurs to become birds and humans to conquer the planet. The Vegavis's Story explores the evidence for a Cretaceous origin of modern birds and why they were able to survive the asteroid collision that saw the demise not only of dinosaurs but of up to three-quarters of all species. The Duck's Story switches to sex: why have so few species retained the ancestral copulatory organ? Or, put another way, why do most birds exhibit the paradoxical phenomenon of penis loss, despite all species requiring internal fertilisation? The Hoatzin's Story reveals unexpected oceanic rafting from Africa to South America: a stranger-than-fiction means of dispersal that is now thought to account for the presence of other South American vertebrates, including geckos and monkeys. The latest theories underpinning speciation are also explored. The Manakin’s Story, for example, reveals how South America’s extraordinarily rich avifauna has been shaped by past geological, oceanographic and climatic changes, while The Storm-Petrel’s Story examines how species can evolve from an ancestral population despite inhabiting the same geographical area. The thorny issue of what constitutes a species is discussed in The Albatross's Story, while The Penguin’s Story explores the effects of environment on phenotype ― in the case of the Emperor penguin, the harshest on the planet. Recent genomic advances have given scientists novel approaches to explore the distant past and have revealed many unexpected journeys, including the unique overland dispersal of an early suboscine from Asia to South America (The Sapayoa’s Story) and the blackbird's ancestral sweepstake dispersals across the Atlantic (The Thrush’s Story). Additional vignettes update more familiar concepts that encourage speciation: sexual selection (The Bird-of-Paradise's Story); extended phenotypes (The Bowerbird's Story); hybridisation (The Sparrow's Story); and 'great speciators' (The White-eye's Story). Finally, the book explores the raft of recent publications that help explain the evolution of cognitive skills (The Crow's Story); plumage colouration (The Starling's Story); and birdsong (The Finch's Story)
Download or read book The First Two written by Adrian Mallabo and published by . This book was released on 2013-03-01 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stronger than the others, worse than the undead. Adam awakes to discover that he has been miraculously cured of the dreaded zombie virus. He is the First Subject, born from the experiments of a group known as the Charon Initiative. As the first of a new breed of mankind, Adam must struggle to find a place for himself in this strange new world. All he knows about himself is that he is a good man. Then a Second Subject is chosen, and this person may prove to be something very different compared to Adam. The question becomes: Did we ever consider the kind of people we are bringing back from the dead?
Download or read book The Origin of Birds written by Gerhard Heilmann and published by . This book was released on 1926 with total page 222 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Rise of Birds written by Sankar Chatterjee and published by JHU Press. This book was released on 2015-04 with total page 387 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: His compelling, occasionally controversial, revelations--accompanied by spectacular illustrations--are a must-read for anyone with a serious interest in the evolution of the feathered dinosaurs, from vertebrate paleontologists and ornithologists to naturalists and birders.
Download or read book Avian Migration written by Peter Berthold and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-03-09 with total page 601 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: P. Berthold and E. Gwinnd Bird migration is an intriguing aspect of the living world - so much so that it has been investigated for as long, and as thoroughly, as almost any other natural phenomenon. Aristotle, who can count as the founder of scientific ornithology, paid very close attention to the migrations of the birds he ob served, but it was not until the reign of Friedrich II, in the first half of the 13th century, that reliable data began to be obtained. From then on, the data base grew rapidly. Systematic studies of bird migration were introduced when the Vogelwarte Rossitten was founded, as the first ornithological biological observation station in the world (see first chapter "In Memory of Vogelwarte Rossitten"). This area later received enormous impetus when ex perimental research on the subject was begun: the large-scale bird-ringing experiment initiated in Rossitten in 1903 by Johannes Thienemann (who was inspired by the pioneering studies of C. C. M. Mortensen), the experiments on photoperiodicity carried out by William Rowan in the 1920s in Canada and retention and release experiments performed by Thienemann in the 1930s in Rossitten, the first experimental study on the orientation of migratory birds. After the Second World War, migration research, while continuing in the previous areas, also expanded into new directions such as radar ornithology, ecophysiology and hormonal control mechanisms, studies of evolution, ge netics, telemetry and others.
Download or read book The Inner Bird written by Gary W. Kaiser and published by UBC Press. This book was released on 2010-10-01 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Birds are among the most successful vertebrates on Earth. An important part of our natural environment and deeply embedded in our culture, birds are studied by more professional ornithologists and enjoyed by more amateur enthusiasts than ever before. However, both amateurs and professionals typically focus on birds' behaviour and appearance and only superficially understand the characteristics that make birds so unique. The Inner Bird introduces readers to the avian skeleton, then moves beyond anatomy to discuss the relationships between birds and dinosaurs and other early ancestors. Gary Kaiser examines the challenges scientists face in understanding avian evolution - even recent advances in biomolecular genetics have failed to provide a clear evolutionary story. Using examples from recently discovered fossils of birds and near-birds, Kaiser describes an avian history based on the gradual abandonment of dinosaur-like characteristics, and the related acquisition of avian characteristics such as sophisticated flight techniques and the production of large eggs. Such developments have enabled modern birds to invade the oceans and to exploit habitats that excluded dinosaurs for millions of years. While ornithology is a complex discipline that draws on many fields, it is nevertheless burdened with obsolete assumptions and archaic terminology. The Inner Bird offers modern interpretations for some of those ideas and links them to more current research. It should help anyone interested in birds to bridge the gap between long-dead fossils and the challenges faced by living species.
Download or read book Avian Brood Parasitism written by Manuel Soler and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-05-02 with total page 566 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Brood parasitism has become one of the most flourishing areas of research in evolutionary ecology and one of the best model systems for investigating coevolution. This subject has undergone remarkable advances during the last two decades, but has not been covered by any book in the 21st century. This book offers a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of the fascinating field of avian brood parasitism. The topics covered include conspecific brood parasitism; evolution and phylogenetic history of avian brood parasites; parasitic behaviour used by brood parasites; adaptations and counter-adaptations of brood parasites and their hosts at every stage of the breeding cycle (before laying, egg, chick and fledgling stages); factors affecting the evolution of host defences and parasitic attacks; the role of phenotypic plasticity in host defences; mechanisms driving egg recognition and rejection; evolution of nest sharing or nest killing by brood parasite chicks; begging behaviour in parasitized nests and food delivery by host adults; and recognition of conspecifics by juvenile brood parasites. This volume provides a comprehensive reference resource for readers and researchers with an interest in birds, behaviour and evolution, as well as a source of hypotheses and predictions for future investigations into this dynamic subject.
Download or read book Early Avian Evolution written by Jingmai Kathleen O’Connor and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2021-09-23 with total page 195 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Taking Wing written by Pat Shipman and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 1999-01-15 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1861, just a few years after the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species, a scientist named Hermann von Meyer made an amazing discovery. Hidden in the Bavarian region of Germany was a fossil skeleton so exquisitely preserved that its wings and feathers were as obvious as its reptilian jaws and tail. This transitional creature offered tangible proof of Darwin's theory of evolution. Hailed as the First Bird, Archaeopteryx has remained the subject of heated debates for the last 140 years. Are birds actually living dinosaurs? Where does the fossil record really lead? Did flight originate from the "ground up" or "trees down"? Pat Shipman traces the age-old human desire to soar above the earth and to understand what has come before us. Taking Wing is science as adventure story, told with all the drama by which scientific understanding unfolds.
