BACKGROUND The Loggerhead Shrike, Eastern subspecies (Lanius ludovicianus ssp.) (LOSH) is a predatory songbird native to Eastern North America. It is estimated that there are fewer than 55 breeding pairs of this subspecies in North America. Captive breeding plays a critical role in preventing the extirpation of this subspecies from its Canadian range. Unfortunately, high numbers of unexplained ...

New emerging avian influenza A viruses pose a continued threat, not only to avian species but also to the humans. Avian influenza viruses increasingly crossing species barriers possibly with increased zoonotic potential. Due to rapid spread of influenza viruses, zoo animals and birds are at great risk. There are many species in zoos that are part of worldwide programme to save endangered specie...

Birds combat ectoparasites with many defences but the first line of defence is grooming behaviour, which includes preening with the bill and scratching with the feet. Preening has been shown to be very effective against ectoparasites. However, most tests have been with feather lice, which are relatively slow moving. Less is known about the effectiveness of preening as a defence against more mob...

Immune responses benefit hosts by clearing pathogens, but they also incur physiological costs and tissue damage. While wild animals differ in how they balance these costs and benefits, the physiological mechanisms underlying such differential investment in immunity remain unknown. Uncovering these mechanisms is crucial to determining how and where selection acts to shape immunological defense. ...

Many unpalatable butterfly species use coloration to signal their distastefulness to birds, but motion cues may also be crucial to ward off predatory attacks. In previous research, captive passion-vine butterflies Heliconius mimetic in colour pattern were also mimetic in motion. Here, I investigate whether wing motion changes with the flight demands of different behaviours. If birds select for ...

used in mobbing probably arose as a flight intention movement (Daanje 1950, Hinde 1954). A component of the evidence for its origin as a flight intention movement is the change in posture that accompanies the wing and tail movements; the movement is similar to the postural change that often precedes flight. This component of the flit (the change in posture) is missing from trogon mobbing tail f...

The illegal wildlife trade may increase the risk of infectious disease transmission, and it may not only cause disease outbreaks in humans but also threaten livestock, native wild populations, and ecosystems' health. Bird species may act as carriers in the transmission of enteric pathogens. However, epidemiological studies on zoonotic bacteria in wild birds are rare in Brazil. From March 2011 t...

A widespread deadly outbreak occurred in captive birds belonging to the family Turdidae in Italy. The present study was performed on 46 dead birds coming from 3 small decoy-bird breeders in central Italy. Only Turdus pilaris, Turdus iliacus, Turdus philomelos and Turdus merula were affected. No other species of bird held by these breeders died. A change of diet before the hunting season was rep...

Ducks are commonly housed in captive environments where their abilities for flight constrained, either temporarily or permanently. The use of restraint modern animal management is contentious and ethically questioned yet any associated impacts on behaviour remain poorly documented evaluated. Comparison information wild ecology activity free-living individuals with from the same species when cap...

Environments often vary with regard to their temporal resource availability, but little is understood concerning how resource predictability impacts animals. The adaptive regulation hypothesis suggests that organisms act to conserve their current energetic state during periods of diminished food access and recuperate their energetic reserves (fat and muscle) during periods of greater food avail...