Amazing as it might sound, ornithologists are still discovering an average of five or six bird species each year that are completely new to science. These aren't all obscure brown birds on tiny islands - witness the bizarre Bare-faced Bulbul from Laos (2009), spectacular Araripe Manakin from Brazil (1998), or gaudy Bugun Liocichla from north-east India (2006). Birds New to Science documents over half a century of these remarkable discoveries, covering round 300 species. Each account includes the story of discovery, a brief description of the bird (many with accompanying photographs), and details of what is known about its biology, range and conservation status. Written in an engaging style, this is a rich reference to an incredible era of adventure in ornithology.

Birds show bewildering diversity in their life histories, mating systems and risk of extinction. Why, for example, are fairy-wrens so sexually promiscuous while swans show life long monogamy? This fascinating book is a comprehensive re-appraisal of avian diversity, and is the most extensive application of modern comparative methods yet undertaken. "I think this is a marvellous book - the most exciting I have read for a long time... A terrific text for both final year undergraduates and for graduate courses, as well as required reading for academics working in the field." Professor Nick Davies, University of Cambridge

Harriers are a world-wide group of birds of prey whose mating systems, population dynamics, and evolution are well-studied. This is the first book to synthesise and analyse the masses of data on the behavioural ecology of harriers. It offers an intriguing comparison of breeding systems among harriers in the northern and southern hemispheres, and includes a new phylogeny of the harriers, based on the most recent DNA findings. It is illustrated throughout with original line drawings of these impressive birds.

This book is a result of the authors' more than 40 years of study on the behavior, populations, and heavy metals in the colonial waterbirds nesting in Barnegat Bay and the nearby estuaries and bays in the Northeastern United States. From Boston Harbor to the Chesapeake, based on longitudinal studies of colonial waterbirds, it provides a clear picture of the toxic trends and effects of heavy metals in the aquatic environment. The authors take a food web, ecosystem approach to contaminants, using population dynamics, habitat selection, and inputs to the bay to examine metal levels. They also look at the human dimension, discuss what metals in birds tell us about human exposure, and describe stakeholder involvement in these issues. The book covers numbers and dynamics, colony sites and locations, and prey contaminant levels, and compares them to other comparable coastal estuaries. It uses colonial waterbirds as the focal point for an ecosystem approach to metals that begins with prey fish and goes through invertebrates to humans. Additionally, it provides information based on long-term integrative studies the authors have done on metal levels and bird species and compares the findings with data from the Harbor Estuaries Program, other Northeast bays, the Great Lakes, and the Wadden Sea.

Wetland birds provide us with some of nature's most wonderful sights--from vast flocks soaring overhead to newly-hatched chicks drying in the sun. Apart from their beauty and recreational and economic importance, these birds are excellent indicators of water quality and measures of biodiversity. But how do they use wetland habitats, and how can we best conserve and maintain them for the future? Milton Weller describes the ecology of wetland birds by identifying patterns of habitat use and typical bird communities that result from the use of resources such as food, cover, and breeding sites. He integrates basic and practical information on bird/habitat relationships for researchers, landowners, managers, and avid birders alike. As wetlands continue to decline, this book will help us to understand the potential and limits of wetlands as bird habitats.

Obligatory brood parasites are birds that reproduce by laying their eggs in the nests of other species. This book discusses the ecological and evolutionary aspects of this remarkable behavioural adaptation.

With the expansion of human settlements and the environmental changes brought on by human activity and pollutants, toxicology and risk assessment of bird and reptile species is becoming increasingly of interest to toxicologists involved in environmental research. This book focuses specifically on environmental risk assessment in non-conventional bird and reptile species. Bird and Reptile Species in Environmental Risk Assessment Strategies will be an ideal companion to toxicologists and ecologists interested in risk assessment in the environments of birds and reptiles. Particularly those with an interest in the impact introduced by human activity. The book will also be of interest to those working in conservation biology, biological invasion, biocontrol and habitat management.

From two experts on wild parrot cognition, a close look at the intelligence, social behavior, and conservation of these widely threatened birds. People form enduring emotional bonds with other animal species, such as dogs, cats, and horses. For the most part, these are domesticated animals, with one notable exception: many people form close and supportive relationships with parrots, even though these amusing and curious birds remain thoroughly wild creatures. What enables this unique group of animals to form social bonds with people, and what does this mean for their survival? In Thinking like a Parrot, Alan B. Bond and Judy Diamond look beyond much of the standard work on captive parrots to the mischievous, inquisitive, and astonishingly vocal parrots of the wild. Focusing on the psychology and ecology of wild parrots, Bond and Diamond document their distinctive social behavior, sophisticated cognition, and extraordinary vocal abilities. Also included are short vignettes-field notes on the natural history and behavior of both rare and widely distributed species, from the neotropical crimson-fronted parakeet to New Zealand's flightless, ground-dwelling kakapo. This composite approach makes clear that the behavior of captive parrots is grounded in the birds' wild ecology and evolution, revealing that parrots' ability to bond with people is an evolutionary accident, a by-product of the intense sociality and flexible behavior that characterize their lives. Despite their adaptability and intelligence, however, nearly all large parrot species are rare, threatened, or endangered. To successfully manage and restore these wild populations, Bond and Diamond argue, we must develop a fuller understanding of their biology and the complex set of ecological and behavioral traits that has led to their vulnerability. Spanning the global distribution of parrot species, Thinking like a Parrot is rich with surprising insights into parrot intelligence, flexibility, and-even in the face of threats-resilience.

This book reviews what is known about the behaviour and population ecology of a popular shorebird, from a scientific conservation perspective. The plight of this bird highlights the many conflicts of interest in coastal zones, between human activities such as shellfishing, land reclamation, barrage construction, and industrial pollution, and the needs of wildlife for food and suitable habitats. As well as detailing Oystercatcher natural history - including the well-known specialization in feeding technique shown by individuals - the authors use their field studies of individual variations in behaviour to produce population models. This novel approach provides tools for predicting how populations will respond to the many environmental changes to which the coastal zone is subject. It thus can play a role in coastal management schemes that seek to balance the needs of people and wildlife, and suggests that the same methods can be applied in other situtations. The volume contains fifteen well-integrated chapters by an international team of contributors, and is fully referenced.

The Australian Zebra Finch is widely used by researchers and teachers in many scientific disciplines where it is the preferred subject for investigations ranging from anatomy and physiology to behavioural development and evolutionary ecology. This monograph is the first to synthesize the information on this colourful species that has accumulated during the past thirty years. It summarizes and integrates much of the laboratory work and places it in the context of the biology of the animals in the wild, with an emphasis on behaviour and ecology. This leads to a detailed understanding of Zebra Finch adaptations and life history that will further enhance the value of the species for researchers and students in behaviour, ecology, and other fields. Aviculturists who keep these attractive birds will also find much of interest in this book.

The Nighthawk's Evening: Notes of a Field Biologist is a work of science writing that will appeal to traditional birders, students, the new "punk birder" movement, and anyone who is fascinated by urban wildlife. It is the story of a woman who leaves her office job in Portland, Oregon, in her late-30s to become a wildlife biologist studying nighthawks. Birders have long puzzled over this acrobatic night-flying bird that nests on rooftops and flocks in the thousands as it treks from Alaska to Argentina and back every year. But what is like to hold a wild bird that few have seen up close? Nighthawks are strange animals, reptiles with feathers, sleepy if you stumble across them during the day, but quick, agile, and especially adept at survival. They have the ability to withstand extreme temperatures and adapt to many habitats, but, nonetheless, they are struggling in the Anthropocene. Gretchen Newberry investigates the hidden world of wildlife around us through this mysterious species. Her search for these illusive birds was an improvised and quixotic adventure. The book takes the reader along her journey, from beaches to forests, grasslands, and urban rooftops across North America. Along the way, she explores what nighthawks have meant to the peoples of North America, their uncertain future, and how their survival and role as bug eaters might address ongoing environmental issues at our farms and in our cities in an age of insect-borne diseases and agricultural pests.

The main theme of Sexual Selection and the Barn Swallow is that sexual selection is important and affects many aspects of animal life such as mating behaviour, parental care, host-parasite interactions, and migration strategies. Birds with extravagant feather ornaments are the standard example of sexual selection. Here the selective advantages of a long tail are investigated for a common bird, the barn swallow, in the context of sexual selection theory. This study constitutes a major empirical test of the theoretical predictions and will be of especial interest to students of behavioural and evolutionary ecology.