Tag: Birds

#StoryBehindThePaper, Guest post

Are multi-brooded birds the current “winners” of climate change?

This blog post is provided by Abigail Kimmitt and Daniel Becker and tells the #StoryBehindthePaper for the paper “Plasticity in female timing may explain earlier breeding in a North American songbird“, which was recently published in the Journal of Animal Ecology. In their study, they explored breeding success of the dark-eyed junco from long term datasets, to see if birds respond to climate change in … Continue reading Are multi-brooded birds the current “winners” of climate change?

Beth Preston1 Comment
#StoryBehindThePaper, Guest post

Florida scrub-jays move elsewhere when competition gets tough

This blog post is provided by Young Ha Suh and tells the #StoryBehindThePaper for the paper “Staging to join non-kin groups in a classical cooperative breeder, the Florida scrub-jay”, which was recently published in the Journal of Animal Ecology. Young Ha Suh is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell University and is also a collaborator of the Archbold … Continue reading Florida scrub-jays move elsewhere when competition gets tough

Beth PrestonLeave a comment
#StoryBehindThePaper, Guest post

Songbirds harbour different microbes depending on where they live

This blog post is provided by Leanne Grieves and tells the #StoryBehindThePaper for the paper ‘Preen gland microbiota of songbirds differ across populations but not sexes’, which was recently published in the Journal of Animal Ecology. Microbiome research is a hot topic. Exciting new studies have found links between the symbiotic microbes (bacteria, fungi, archaea and protists) that live naturally on animals’ bodies and animal health, fitness … Continue reading Songbirds harbour different microbes depending on where they live

Beth Preston1 Comment
#StoryBehindThePaper, Guest post

Take Cover: Even a post-fire specialist needs a break from the burn for part of its life cycle

This blog post is provided by Meredith Walker, Communications Specialist at The Institute for Bird Populations, and tells the #StoryBehindThePaper for the article “Juvenile survival of a burned forest specialist in response to variation in fire characteristics“, led by Andrew Stillman, which was recently published in Journal of Animal Ecology. When Andrew Stillman and field crews from The Institute for Bird Populations (IBP) tagged fledgling … Continue reading Take Cover: Even a post-fire specialist needs a break from the burn for part of its life cycle

Beth PrestonLeave a comment
#StoryBehindThePaper, Guest post

Flexible or Familiar? Migrating Gulls are both!

This blog post is provided by Morgan Brown and tells the #StoryBehindThePaper for the article “Long‐distance migrants vary migratory behaviour as much as short‐distance migrants: An individual‐level comparison from a seabird species with diverse migration strategies”, which was recently published in Journal of Animal Ecology. Morgan Brown is a PhD candidate with Prof. Judy Shamoun-Baranes and Prof. Willem Bouten in the Institute for Biodiversity and … Continue reading Flexible or Familiar? Migrating Gulls are both!

Beth PrestonLeave a comment
#StoryBehindThePaper, Guest post

When a shared vision becomes a reality: connecting data on individually marked birds

This blog post is provided by Dr. Antica Culina and Professor Dr. Marcel Visser and tells the #StoryBehindThePaper for the paper “Connecting the data landscape of long-term ecological studies: the SPI-Birds data hub”, which was recently published in Journal of Animal Ecology. Behind the paper there are people, data, and a lot of work. Behind this particular paper there are around 120 people and data … Continue reading When a shared vision becomes a reality: connecting data on individually marked birds

Julie SheardLeave a comment
Guest post

Birds in paradise: biogeography in the subtropics

Biogeography is often more complicated than the species-area relationship as discussed in a Journal of Animal Ecology paper testing multiple extensions of island biogeography theory. Sam Ross, lead author of the study, is a PhD student at Trinity College Dublin studying ecological responses to global change. Sam has additional interests in community ecology and macroecology, and works closely with colleagues at the Okinawa Institute of … Continue reading Birds in paradise: biogeography in the subtropics

Sarah Marley1 Comment
Guest post

Determinants of micro- and macroparasite diversity in birds: the fruits of comparing apples and oranges

Identifying the factors shaping variation in parasite diversity among host species is crucial to understand wildlife diseases. A recent paper in Journal of Animal Ecology investigated the role of host life history and ecology in explaining the species richness of micro- and macro-parasites in birds world-wide. Lead author Dr Jorge Sanchez Gutierrez explains more about the study. The phrase “comparing apples and oranges” is often … Continue reading Determinants of micro- and macroparasite diversity in birds: the fruits of comparing apples and oranges

Sarah MarleyLeave a comment
Guest post

Weak effects of geolocators on small birds

Biologging is a powerful tool and often utilised to study animal movement patterns. But how can researchers be sure that the tag itself does not negatively impact the study animal? A recent meta-analysis published in the Journal of Animal Ecology investigated the effects of geolocators on small birds. Lead author Vojtěch Brlík explains the #StoryBehindThePaper and the study results. When I was discussing suitable topics for my bachelor’s … Continue reading Weak effects of geolocators on small birds

Sarah Marley1 Comment
Guest post

I Set Out To Track Birds, but Ended Up Tracking Predators

The understanding of the interplay of movement, behaviour and physiology that biologging offers has applied relevance for a range of fields, including evolutionary ecology, wildlife conservation and behavioural ecology. In recognition of this, the Journal of Animal Ecology has an upcoming Special Feature on Biologging  (submissions due 20th September). But sometimes, you don’t end up tracking exactly what you expect… This was the case for Dylan Smith, an … Continue reading I Set Out To Track Birds, but Ended Up Tracking Predators

Sarah MarleyLeave a comment