Some birds use illusion to escape
Research reveals our birds’ burst of colour bamboozles predators
A good magician knows the secret of a quick getaway – create an illusion! And it seems like some Australian birds are...
Birds
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What you may have missed…
Baby pterosaurs soaring, Venusian weather, crafty crows and more – here’s what went on in last we...
Baby pterosaurs fly the nestInfant pterosaurs may have taken to the air as soon as they cracked out of the egg, a...
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When will fairy wrens help other fairy wrens?
Birds respond differently to predators if they’ve got a shot at breeding.
Researchers have revealed the nuanced calculations that purple-crowned fairy-wrens make when deciding to defend other...
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Clever cockatoos have learned to open kerb-side bins — and it has global significance
Move over, bin chickens: bin cockies are here, and scientists say they’re confirming the cultural...
John Martin, University of Sydney; Barbara Klump, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, and Lucy Aplin, University...
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New birds outshine old birds in New Zealand
Predation and deforestation are impacting deep endemic species more than newer avian arrivals.
Older native Aotearoa New Zealand birds may be more threatened with decline than younger species, a new report publis...
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Robins’ eyes may have in-built ‘compass’
Researchers identify protein in the eye of a robin that’s sensitive to Earth’s magnetic field
Migratory birds have an uncanny ability to orient themselves, finding their way across sometimes thousands of kilomet...
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Orange-bellied parrots fly free
Several successes for the critically endangered migratory parrots – one spotted in historic feedi...
Bird enthusiasts in South Australia’s Coorong region have just spotted an orange-bellied parrot, and heard another on...
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Putting a price on undiscovered Australian species
The mission to map Australia’s biodiversity will bring big economic benefits.
What’s the monetary value of our wildlife? Pretty high, according to Deloitte Access Economics, which has just releas...
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Duetting wrens sing with telepathic link
Sound cues cause brain inhibition when it isn’t their turn to sing.
The great duetters in history may have had more than just musical chemistry: for songbirds, there could even be a lin...
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Learning from temperature-sensitive bird species
Studying their response to climate change could help other birds.
Ethiopia’s White-tailed Swallow and Bush-crow bird species are unique vulnerability to rising temperatures around the...
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There are about 50 billion birds alive today
Data from a massive citizen science project is used to estimate global bird numbers.
An Australian study has set out to measure the number of birds worldwide, returning an estimate of 50 billion – altho...
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Kiwis don’t like noisy visitors
Loud sounds can generate abnormal behaviour in iconic birds in captivity.
The noises people make when visiting kiwis in captivity – such as talking or mobile phones ringing – can upset the ch...