Ornithology

ABCD: Avian Brain Circuitry Database
Searchable database of the regions of a bird’s brain.
http://www.behav.org/abcd/abcd.php?proc=ares

The Atlas of Bird Migration
Comprehensive article on the great challenge faced by long distance migrants which have to find their way to winter quarters and return to their breeding grounds in the spring. [PDF]
http://www.brownreference.com/php/PDFS/AN_Title_Information/457---Sample_Spreads.pdf

Avian Reproduction: Anatomy and the Bird Egg
Notes on the bird reproductive system and the development of the embryo, with explanatory drawings and photographs.
http://people.eku.edu/ritchisong/avianreproduction.html

Avian Reproduction: Clutch Size, Incubation and Hatching
Notes on clutch size optimization in birds, reproductive success, embryo development, incubation and the hatching process, with links to other similar articles.
http://people.eku.edu/ritchisong/avianreproduction2.html

Beak
Article describing the anatomy of this distinctive feature of birds which, in addition to eating, can be used for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, probing for food, courtship, and feeding the young.
http://www.ipedia.net/information/Beak

Bird Feathers
This article discusses the features of feathers and the different types of feathers found on different parts of the bird.
http://petcaretips.net/bird-feather.html

Bird Milk
Article describing how the young of some birds are fed on special secretions from their parents.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Bird_Milk.html

Bird Respiratory System
Article explaining how air sacs play an important part in the gaseous exchange in birds, with many diagrams.
http://people.eku.edu/ritchisong/RITCHISO/birdrespiration.html

Bird Skull Collection
Images and data about skulls of western Palearctic and Tropical species, with complete skeletons of some species.
http://www.skullsite.co.uk/

Birdcall synthesis
Article describing how birds use their syrinx, throat and beak to make a wide range of tones without the sophisticated muscle structure possessed by humans.
http://www.obiwannabe.co.uk/tutorials/html/tutorial_birds.html

Birdnet
Ornithological Council's website with comprehensive data about North American ornithological resources.
http://www.nmnh.si.edu/BIRDNET/

Chicken Embryo
A number of fine photographs of the development of a chick inside the egg.
http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/artnov04macro/mlchicken.html

Creches
Article describing how some birds adopt the strategy of grouping their young, leaving them with a guardian while both parents go off to forage.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Creches.html

Development and Uses of Avian Skeleton Collections
Skeletons are essential for the identification of fossils, bones from archaeological sites and food items taken by predators as well as histological and physiological studies. [PDF]
http://www.boc-online.org/PDF/vol124/Storrs%20Olson.pdf

EcoBirds Behaviour
Provides a series of bird articles covering nesting, song, migration and the curious habit of anting.
http://birds.ecoport.org/Behaviour/EBbehaviour.htm

Electronic Resources on Ornithology
Annotated links and ornithological articles by Christopher Majka.
http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/Environment/NHR/bird.html

Feather Quest
Interactive quiz. Can you identify the birds from which these feathers come?
http://www.nmnh.si.edu/BIRDNET/FeatherQuest/FeatherQuest.html

Flapping Flight: Inertial Studies
Technical article by researchers at Bristol University who measured the wings of bats and birds and calculated their efficiency in flight.
http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/reprint/198/8/1655

Flight in Birds
How do birds fly? An introduction to flight in birds examining wing shape, airflows, flapping flight and gliding.
http://www.earthlife.net/birds/flight.html

Incubation: Heating the Egg
Most birds create the required temperature by sitting on their eggs but some transfer heat through their webbed feet, and the megapodes of Australia bury them in a mound of decaying vegetation.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Incubation.html

Index of Lectures
A series of articles on different aspects of bird biology such as feathers, flight, respiration, territoriality, reproduction and metabolism.
http://www.ornithology.com/lectures/Introduction.html

List of Essays
Many articles on every aspect of bird life. A comprehensive and useful resource.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/SUFRAME.html

The Making of an Egg
Describes the development of the egg of a bird from the release of a mature ovum to the completed egg with shell being laid.
http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0021.html

Mechanics of Respiration in Birds
Notes and diagrams explaining how birds ventilate their lungs.
http://education.vetmed.vt.edu/Curriculum/VM8054/Labs/Lab26/Notes/birdresp.htm

The Mystery of Migration
Article that tries to answer the question of how and why birds migrate.
http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/birds/migration.htm

The Normal Moulting Process in Birds
Talk given by Avian Vet A. K. Jones to a conference of the Association of Avian Veterinarians in August 1998.
http://www.parrotpassionsuk.com/Advice/Moulting.htm

Ornithological Worldwide Literature
OWL is a compilation of citations and abstracts from worldwide publications concerning the science of ornithology.
http://egizoosrv.zoo.ox.ac.uk/owl/default.htm

Ornithology: Science of Birds
Includes data on the science of wild birds, with an emphasis on conservation and education.
http://www.ornithology.com/

Parental Care
The young of passerines when first hatched are naked, blind, and helpless and require much care which involves feeding, training and protection from predators.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Parental_Care.html

Polygyny
Most birds are monogamous, but in some species the occurrence of polygyny, where one male mates with more than one female, is related to high-quality territories with an abundance of resources.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Polygyny.html

Population Dynamics
Essay discussing the factors behind the variation in the number of individuals in a bird population over time.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Population_Dynamics.html

Power Napping in Pigeons
Max Planck scientists find evidence that pigeons prevented from taking naps in the afternoon sleep more intensely at night. [PDF]
http://www.orn.mpg.de/aktuelles/presse/tauben_en.pdf

A Qualitative and Quantitative Study of the Lung of an Ostrich
The colossal body size, the relinquishment of flight and the extreme thermal stresses on the ground make the examination of an ostrich’s lungs rewarding.
http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/content/full/204/13/2313

Raptor Information System
The RIS is a free searchable catalog of over 38,000 references about the biology and management of birds of prey.
http://ris.wr.usgs.gov

Sense of Direction
Article from the Princeton Weekly Bulletin outlining how Biologist Martin Wikelski is helping to settle the long-standing debate over how migratory birds manage to navigate in darkness and bad weather.
http://www.princeton.edu/pr/pwb/04/0503/1b.shtml

Sexual Selection
Female birds of some species tend to choose as mates those males holding the most desirable territories, but there is little evidence that females preferentially select males with different degrees of ornamentation.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Sexual_Selection.html

Site Tenacity
Many birds return to the same nesting site each season. This essay discusses why this should be so.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Site_Tenacity.html

Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center
Ecological and land-management research, education, conservation policy, data on migration and fact sheets.
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/ConservationAndScience/MigratoryBirds/

The Structure of Avian Skin and Feathers
Technical article describing a bird's skin and associated structures, its feathers, beak, claws and spurs.
http://pcwww.liv.ac.uk/~timn/THE%20STRUCTURE%20OF%20AVIAN%20SKIN%20AND%20FEATHERS.doc

Teachers' Domain: Bird Beak Gallery
Provides an essay on beaks, and photographs of birds heads and beaks.
http://www.teachersdomain.org/resources/tdc02/sci/life/stru/beakgallery/index.html

Territoriality
Article describing how birds try to exclude others of the same species from their home range.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Territoriality.html

Urban Birds
Article discussing how birds have adapted to urban foraging amid the artificial concrete and steel ecosystems of cities.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Urban_Birds.html

Vocal Copying
Article describing how birds learn their songs from adult tutors and may incorporate sounds from other species into their repertoire.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Vocal_Copying.html

Vocal Dialects
Article describing how the songs of many avian species show geographic variation.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Vocal_Dialects.html

Vocal Functions
Songs identify the species of the singing bird. The territorial song of males serves the dual purpose of territorial proclamation directed at other males and of mate attraction directed toward females.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Vocal_Functions.html

What is a Bird?
This article describes the evolution of birds, their value to humanity, characteristic features, behavior and their reproductive behavior.
http://petcaretips.net/what-is-bird.html

When and How do Birds Migrate
Article discussing the varying strategies adopted by birds in finding their way when taking part in their long distance journeys.
http://www.earthlife.net/birds/migration2.html

A Tale of Two Boobies
Biological examination and dissection at the Slater Museum of a booby that strayed to the Pacific Northwest. [RSS]
http://www.ups.edu/x13725.xml

Wing Image Collection
The Slater Museum of Natural History provides a comprehensive selection of photographs of bird wings. [RSS]
http://www.ups.edu/x5662.xml