This is a study which proved that the Goffin’s cockatoo is able to use a tool set or a toolkit which shows a high degree of intelligence. What is a tool set scientifically speaking? It is the use of two or more different kinds of …
This is an update on the devastating avian flu outbreak in the UK. My thanks to The Times newspaper and Rhys Blakely the science correspondent. Before I mention the report, I can remember a television news item yesterday featuring a woman who looks after a …
Research published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B reveals that albatrosses appear to learn to avoid fishing boats in order to improve survivability and lengthen their lifespan because when they try to feed on long lines baited with fish and squid, they become …
We see cranes in shallow water sleeping for hours on one leg. And birds roost in dense trees where they hike up one leg, turn their head into their feathers and fall asleep on a twig. How do they avoid falling over? Have you tried …
The humble earthworm is vital to Britain’s biodiversity. Their population size have declined by at least 33% over the past 25 years according to a study. The decline in the number is probably as important as any other major decline in wildlife. Prof James Pearce-Higgins …
Evolution has resulted in the great grey owl developing advanced, scientific skills to detect voles 50 cm below the snow just by the sound that they make. And it is doubly astonishing they can do this because snow this deep is a great sound dampener …
Well, we don’t like all birdsong. We like listening to the birdsong of certain species which produce melodious, music-like sounds which are nonetheless high frequency and very quiet. And they have a certain complexity which makes them more like music. We don’t like the sounds …
Background: As the title says, magpies anywhere fiercely defend their nests. This is seen when magpies peck at domestic cats who are outside minding their own business often snoozing on the ground. Australia is hosting the UCI World Road Championships which despite meticulous planning designated …
I don’t know about you but I find that the whistling sound that pigeons make when they take off to be irritating because I feed squirrels and squirrels chuck their food onto the ground. Pigeons come along and eat this food. And pigeons are very …
