"Yes you are flying and I am having a rest on wing."
Funny Animal Pictures by Ty Buchanan
Showing posts with label bird. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bird. Show all posts
Kiwi Came from Australia
Three years ago a fossil was found at st Bathams in New Zealand. The record books now have to be rewritten. It seems the fossil is an ancestor of the Kiwi and it indicates that it was related to the Australian emu. This undermines the premise that the kiwi is a solely New Zealand bird. After all it is the national symbol.
You see, the emu relative could fly and it flew to New Zealand. It was a tiny bird compared to the kiwi. The enormous egg that kiwis lay evolved. It was not "handed-down" by the giant Moa. Eggs began to get larger in birds during the Miocene.
The theory that the kiwi originated in Australia was commonly held before this fossil find. It was believed to have got to New Zealand when the country was joined to Australia on Gondwanaland, but his view has been put to rest.
Most New Zealand birds got bigger over time. This was not unusual. The kiwi evolved from the earlier tiny ancestor. Discovery of this 20 million year old fossil was pure luck. It is the oldest fossil ever found in New Zealand.
Conservation by Ty Buchanan
Orange-Bellied Parrot About to Become Extinct
It's a tough time for the orange-bellie. This species of parrot is about to become extinct. It is estimated to have five years left to live. A few years ago there were 70 pairs. Now only 50 birds remain. The last species of bird to go extinct in Australia ceased its existence 70 years ago.
For the most part, people don't seem to care. However, there are more close to extinction. A fight ensues to keep the orange-bellie alive. In 1984 the Orange-Bellied Parrot (OBP) Recovery Team was created to monitor and protect the bird. A protected breeding program was established in south-west Tasmania. Fifteen years of drought has seen the birds' supply of seeds dwindle to almost nothing. Water has been allocated for irrigation and piped away from the region.
A last throw of the dice involves catching 10 pairs then breeding them in a caged area. This kind of action is unusual. It would be expected that eggs be taken from nests of wild birds, with hatching done in an incubator then hand feeding. This way more eggs would be laid when the initial eggs are taken away.
Once wild birds are taken from the wild they will always be domesticated. Learning from older birds ends. There is no way that knowledge of feeding grounds can be passed on.
Conservation by Ty Buchanan
Ostriches Use Their Wings to Run
The mystery of why dinosaurs evolved feathers has been solved. Observation of ostriches shows that wings are used to retain balance while running. Far from being evolutionary leftovers, they are used constantly.
This finding was made by breeding ostriches that were "human-friendly". Then they were then able to be tested, which took place when they were three years old. The ostriches were made to run down a 300 meter "track", indoors. They were seen to zigzag, brake and turn, guiding their bodies using wings as rudders.
Tests showed that feathers provided lift which improved stability. All living flightless birds are able to evade capture by quickly turning one way then the other. Without wings they would not be able to do this.
This finding was made by breeding ostriches that were "human-friendly". Then they were then able to be tested, which took place when they were three years old. The ostriches were made to run down a 300 meter "track", indoors. They were seen to zigzag, brake and turn, guiding their bodies using wings as rudders.
Tests showed that feathers provided lift which improved stability. All living flightless birds are able to evade capture by quickly turning one way then the other. Without wings they would not be able to do this.
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Funny Animal Photos by Ty Buchanan
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Artificial Insemination of Budgies
Artificial insemination is common these days particularly to produce better animals for meat in the market. Cattle, sheep and even horse insemination could be said to a be the norm. Higher quality animals is the goal. Should artificial insemination be used to improve animals kept as a hobby?
Breeding show budgies is taken very seriously by many people, so much so that widespread "cheating" takes place. Clipping of cheek patches is not allowed but it is still sneakily done. High quality show winners are usually produced by putting fertile eggs from good birds under "sitters", common budgies with a better breeding instinct.
Michael Pace went to extremes to breed his prizewinner in the opaline class at the Australian National Budgerigar Championships. He practiced artificial insemination in his own way. A capillary tube was used to extract sperm from the male which was then inserted into the female within six hours. A lot of hit-and-miss took place. It took four years to breed the show winner.
Conservation
Fossilised Eggshells Are Ideal for Extracting DNA
Jurassic Park is getting closer to reality. Australian scientists have managed to get DNA from fossilised eggshells of extinct birds. The Team warns though that bringing ancient creatures back to life is a long way off. Particles of fossilised eggshells from Australia, New Zealand and Madagascar were used in the research.
A target species was the Moa bird which lived in New Zealand into the 18th century. Another was the Elephant Bird which went extinct in Madagascar during the 17th century. Older birds were also worked on: the New Zealand Duck, Australian Owl and an Emu which was 19,000 years old. Work on older fossils did not come up with usable DNA, but the relatively recent ones did give promising results.
Techniques used were the usual reduction of samples and polymerase amplification. These were very short pieces of DNA obtained from minute samples. Eggshells were found to be even better than bones and hair for storing DNA.
A target species was the Moa bird which lived in New Zealand into the 18th century. Another was the Elephant Bird which went extinct in Madagascar during the 17th century. Older birds were also worked on: the New Zealand Duck, Australian Owl and an Emu which was 19,000 years old. Work on older fossils did not come up with usable DNA, but the relatively recent ones did give promising results.
Techniques used were the usual reduction of samples and polymerase amplification. These were very short pieces of DNA obtained from minute samples. Eggshells were found to be even better than bones and hair for storing DNA.
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Science
Spider Eats Bird
Is it safe to go out? Well maybe not. A spider was seen eating a bird in Cairns, north Queensland.
The golden orb weaver spider usually eats insects. It is a step up for it to consume a bird. The bird had flown into the spider's web and become weak. Then the spider attacked it.
Golden orb spiders grow much larger than the one shown in the photograph. Though they were not thought capable of eating a whole bird.
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Science
Aussie Bird Flies a Long Way
An Australian bird has flown a long way. Scientists were studying birds on the shores of western Alaska in the Arctic. They saw a bartailed godwit and examined the bird believing it to be a local inhabitant. The tag on its leg, however, showed that it had flown a very long way. Australian scientists had banded the bird earlier in Victoria. The small creature had travelled more than 8,000 miles.
Studies had shown that bartailed godwits usually spend their life in the same local area where they were born, though many presumed that they flew to the Arctic to breed. This has now been substantiated by the discovery. It is known that banded dunlin and semipalmated sandpipers fly to the Arctic from Asia and South America.
With the Arctic thawing, damage could be done to future breeding populations of birds. The hotter Arctic summer could affect the survival of the young. Migratory shorebirds are decreasing in number. This is due, it is believed, to habitat loss and global warming. More research is required in order to identify specific causes.
Studies had shown that bartailed godwits usually spend their life in the same local area where they were born, though many presumed that they flew to the Arctic to breed. This has now been substantiated by the discovery. It is known that banded dunlin and semipalmated sandpipers fly to the Arctic from Asia and South America.
With the Arctic thawing, damage could be done to future breeding populations of birds. The hotter Arctic summer could affect the survival of the young. Migratory shorebirds are decreasing in number. This is due, it is believed, to habitat loss and global warming. More research is required in order to identify specific causes.
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Conservation
Scientists Are Studying New Zealand's Extinct Moa Bird
Somehow they have worked out that wing feathers had speckled white tips. This was to camouflage the bird from predators. The very large Haast eagle once existed that preyed on them. It is claimed that because the plumage of other flightless NZ birds is dull with speckled tips this idea is valid.
The scientists plan to get feathers from the end of the quill and further down the quill to compare coloration. It is hoped the findings will enable researchers to correctly reconstruct life-like models of extinct birds.
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Ornithology
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