Research Catalog

Title

Ornithology / Frank B. Gill ; bird portraits by James E. Coe ; consultant for bird portraiture, Guy Tudor.

Author

Gill, Frank B.

Publication

New York : W.H. Freeman, ©1995.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xxvii, 763 pages : illustrations, maps; 26 cm

Summary

"With the Second Edition of his acclaimed text, Frank Gill offers the most comprehensive, up-to-date look at ornithology available. Not just a catalogue of species, it takes a conceptual, research-based approach to communicating an understanding of birds, providing an interpretive context that gives focus and meaning to the details of avian life. You get the latest on the impact of evolution on birds, especially the integration of morphological, behavioral, and physiological adaptations; contemporary research on communication and learning, social behavior, mating and reproduction, and population and community ecology; and contributions of avian biology to such fields as ecology, sociobiology, population biology, and biogeography."--Jacket.

Subject

• Ornithology
• Birds
• Birds
• ornithology
• Ornithology
• Ornitologia

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 693-735) and index.

Contents

• Basic Characteristics of Birds -- Adaptive Radiation of Form and Function -- Bird Names and Classifications -- Biogeography -- Reptilian Features of Birds -- Archaeopteryx: The Link Between Birds and Reptiles -- Evolution of Feathers -- Reptilian Ancestors of Birds -- Evolution of Avian Flight -- After Archaeopteryx -- Modern Birds -- The History of Avifaunas -- Speciation -- Systematics -- Species -- Classification and Phylogeny -- Taxonomic Characters -- Ratite Relationships -- Convergence -- Flamingo Relationships -- Current Revolutions in Avian Systematics -- Feather Structure -- The Feather Coat.
• Feather Care -- Feather Growth -- Molts and Plumages -- Feather Colors -- Genetic Control of Feather Color -- Avian Skeleton -- Flight Muscles -- Elementary Aerodynamics -- Wing Sizes and Shapes -- Gliding Flight -- Flapping Flight -- Flightless Birds -- The High Body Temperature of Birds -- Avian Respiratory System -- Avian Circulatory System -- Levles of Metabolism -- Insulation, Heat Loss, and the Bird's Climate Space -- Temperature Regulation -- Water Economy -- Daily Time and Energy Budgets -- Bill Structure -- Avian Digestive System -- Wax as Food -- Feeding Behavior and Energy Balance.
• Learning to Feed -- Nutrition -- Energy Balance and Reserves -- Avian Intelligence -- The Avian Brain -- Control of Song by the Central Nervous System -- Spatial Memory -- Avian Vision -- Eye Anatomy -- Detection of Natural Magnetic Fields -- Avian Hearing -- Use of Echolocation for Navigation and Prey Detection -- Mechanoreception -- Responses to Barometric Pressure -- Avian Taste and Smell -- Senses and Behavior: A Projection -- Plumage Color Patterns -- Visual Identity -- Evolution of Displays -- Ritualized Behavior -- Deciphering Displays -- Agonistic Behavior -- The Game of Communication.
• Sexual Selection -- Sexual Selection and the Extrinsic Displays of Bowerbirds -- Good Genes versus Fashion Icons -- Physical Attributes -- Sound Production by the Syrinx -- Avian Vocabularies -- Vocal Identity -- Individual Recognition -- Song Repertoires -- Vocal Mimicry -- Learning to Sing -- Dialects -- Annual Cycles -- Circadian and Circannual Rhythms -- Role of Photoperiod -- The Receptor-Control System -- Physiological Control of Molt -- Breeding Seasons -- Energetic Costs of Reproduction -- Costs and Timing of Molt -- The Annual Cycles of Waterfowl -- Nonannual Cycles.
• Patterns of Migration -- Why Do Birds Migrate? -- Migratory Feats -- Fatty Fuels for Migration -- Flight Ranges of Migrants -- Timing of Migration -- Use of Visual Landmarks -- The Solar Compass -- The Stellar Compass -- Navigation by Olfaction -- Responses to Geomagnetism -- Learning to Navigate Maps and Bicoordinate Navigation -- Individual Spacing Behavior -- Territorial Behavior -- Dominant Behavior -- Flocking Behavior -- Feeding in Flocks -- Safety in Flocks -- Mixed-Species Flocks and Social Signals -- Gonads -- Secondary Sex Characteristics -- Sperm Production -- Maturation of the Ovum.
• Copulation and Fertilization -- Egg Production -- Clutch Size -- The Avian Egg -- Nest Architecture -- Nest Materials -- Nest Safety -- Colonial Nesting -- Nest Building -- Nest Microclimates -- Incubation -- Kinds of Mating Systems -- Monogamy -- Pair Formation and Assessment -- Extra-Pair Copulations -- Mating Systems and Ecology -- Polygyny -- Polyandry -- Lek Displays of Promiscuous Birds -- Embryonic Development -- Hatching -- Early Experience -- Altricial versus Precocial Modes of Development -- Temperature Regulation -- Energy and Nutrition -- Growth Rates -- Sibling.
• Rivalry -- Feeding the Nestlings -- Nest Sanitation -- Fledging from the Nest -- Learning Essential Skills -- Parental Care and Monogamy -- Trade-offs and Conflicts in Parental Care -- Cheating and Cooperation -- Intraspecific Brood Parasitism -- Obligate Brood Parasites -- Cooperative Breeding -- The Complex Society of a Bee-eater -- Life History Patterns -- Life Tables -- Annual Survival and Mortality -- Fecundity -- Delayed Breeding -- Evolution of Clutch Size -- Brood Reduction: A Retrospective Adjustment -- Dynamically Changing Population Sizes -- Population Growth Patterns -- Population.
• Regulation -- Natural Factors That Limit Populations -- Recruitment -- Regulation of Great Tit Populations -- What is a Species? -- Geographical Variation -- Patterns of Genetic Variation -- Population Structure -- Gene Flow and Clines -- Local Variation -- Geographical Isolation -- Assortative Mating -- Secondary Contact and Hybridization -- Stable Hybrid Zones -- Ecology of Speciation -- Behavior and Speciation -- Species Diversity -- Open versus Closed Communities -- Competition -- Character and Ecological Displacement -- The Dynamics of Local Avifaunas -- Causes of Extinction.
• Small Island Effect -- Modern Threats to Bird Populations -- Environmental Poisons -- Loss of Critical Habitat -- Habitat Conservation -- The Live Bird Trade -- Excessive Human Predation -- Rise of Conservation Efforts in North America -- Restoration Programs -- The Hawk Mountain Story -- Promoting Protection Through Pride -- The Value of Birdwatchers -- Personal Conservation Initiatives.

ISBN

• 0716724154
• 9780716724155

LCCN

94012109

OCLC

• ocm30354617
• 30354617
• SCSB-2034941

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library