On the Behavior of the Black Swift


links.jstor.org
M Marin – The Condor, 1997 – JSTOR
Abstract

The behavior of Black Swifts was studied in southern California from 1990 to 1992. Four types of aerial interactions were distinguished: (a) group chase, (b) pair chase, (c) pair contact, and (d) touch and grasp. The latter two interactions can be intraspecific or interspecific. Aerial copulation was not observed.
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France’s songbird delicacy is outlawea


Telegraph.co.uk, United Kingdom – Sep 8, 2014
By Susan Bell in Paris, Sunday Telegraph
French gourmands are to be denied what one restaurant critic describes as the “barbaric pleasure” of feasting on tiny songbirds after their government announced that it intended finally to enforce laws that have been on the statute books for eight years.
Long considered the pinnacle of gastronomic delight by the French, the ortolan is a protected species after being hunted almost out of existence.
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Nest building is a sexually selected behaviour in the barn swallow

eeza.csic.es JUAN JOSEu SOLER*, JOSEu JAVIER CUERVO†, ANDERS PAPE MØLLER‡ & FLORENTINO DE LOPE§ *Departamento de Biologi ́a Animal y Ecologi ́a, Universidad de Granada †Estacio ́ n Biolo ́ gica de Don ̃ana, C.S.I.C. ‡Laboratoire d’Ecologie, CNRS URA 258, Universite ́ Pierre et Marie Curie §Departamento de Zoologi ́a, Universidad de Extremadura (Received 19 […]

Testosterone and group size in cliff swallows: testing the “challenge hypothesis” in a colonial bird


sciencedirect.com
Linda C. Smitha, Samrrah A. Raoufb, 1, Mary Bomberger Brownc, John C. Wingfieldb and Charles R. Brownc, ,
The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey, Pomona, NJ 08240, United States
bDepartment of Zoology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, United States
cDepartment of Biological Sciences, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK 74104, United States
Received 17 May 2004;  revised 25 July 2004;  accepted 18 August 2004.  Available online 26 October 2004.
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Edible bird's nest extract inhibits influenza virus infection.


sciencedirect.com
Chao-Tan Guoa, b, c, Tadanobu Takahashia, c, Wakoto Bukawad, Noriko Takahashic, e, Hirokazu Yagic, e, Koichi Katoc, e, Kazuya I.-P. Jwa Hidaria, c, Daisei Miyamotoa, c, Takashi Suzukia, c and Yasuo Suzukia, c,
aDepartment of Biochemistry, University of Shizuoka, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences and COE Program in the 21st century, Suruga-ku, Shizuoka 422-8526, Japan
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Swallow Removal

barn-swallows.net Cliff swallows nest in colonies and often live in close association with humans. Many swallow colonies on buildings and other structures are innocuous. In some situations, however, they can become a major nuisance, primarily because of droppings they deposit. In such instances they may create aesthetic problems, foul machinery, and cause health hazards by […]

Fall migration yields unusual sightings

The Daily News, Canada – 9 hours ago

CLARENCE STEVENS
The Daily News
This past week has been an exciting one for birders in Nova Scotia. There is no doubt that the fall migration is well on its way to working birders into a frenzy as a slew of unusual birds visit the province.  Many will be happy to hear that two of the current Hot Spots in Nova Scotia are near Metro. These are the Prospect area and the provinces Eastern Shore.
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Rough-winged Swallows

hawkowl.blogspot.com Every day on my way to and from work (my whopping 6 minute commute), I pass a grassy field that always has several Northern Rough-winged Swallows (Stelgidopteryx serripennis) zooming high and low catching insects in their acrobatic way. From my perspective of birding, this swallow is a rather under appreciated member of its family. […]

An amazing sight':Swallows swarm Plum Island on journey south

Gloucester Daily Times – Aug 23 6:41 AM Gloucester Daily Times PLUM ISLAND – The sign leading into the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge tells the story of swarms of swallows stopping here to eat up the plentiful moths, spiders and mosquitoes. On a simple white marker board with a drawing of a swallow-like bird, it asks […]

Cyathus striatus, one of the bird's nest fungi

botit.botany.wisc.edu This month’s fungus is another common inhabitant of bark or wood mulch. Although less than a centimeter in diameter, Cyathus striatus often grows in huge clusters, thus making them easily visible, even from some distance. They’re cute little fungi, almost always found wherever there is wood, as long as you look hard enough. The […]