Categories Of Birds Research Articles

Age and sex ratios of wintering Long-tailed Ducks Clangula hyemalis can be determined by analysis of photos of flying flocks at sea: A method description

The West Siberian/North European population of Long-tailed Duck Clangula hyemalis that breeds in Fennoscandia and Northwestern Russia, and winters in the Baltic Sea, has declined by at least 65% since the 1990s and is classified as globally vulnerable. To propose effective management actions to stop the decline, knowledge about demographic parameters is required. A photo survey method by which it is possible, in winter, to collect data on sex ratios and production of first-winter birds is presented here. The plumage traits and bill patterns, which are detectable in photos taken at a distance, are described. The traits can be used to discriminate between three categories of birds: adult males, first-winter males, and females. To extrapolate results from several photo surveys and obtain population-wide estimates of demographic parameters, knowledge about non-random distributions of different bird categories is needed. It was found that different age and sex categories were distributed differently across flocks of different sizes. The required sample sizes and the possible constraints and biases related to the photo survey method are discussed.

A Fine-Grained Bird Classification Method Based on Attention and Decoupled Knowledge Distillation.

Classifying birds accurately is essential for ecological monitoring. In recent years, bird image classification has become an emerging method for bird recognition. However, the bird image classification task needs to face the challenges of high intraclass variance and low inter-class variance among birds, as well as low model efficiency. In this paper, we propose a fine-grained bird classification method based on attention and decoupled knowledge distillation. First of all, we propose an attention-guided data augmentation method. Specifically, the method obtains images of the object's key part regions through attention. It enables the model to learn and distinguish fine features. At the same time, based on the localization-recognition method, the bird category is predicted using the object image with finer features, which reduces the influence of background noise. In addition, we propose a model compression method of decoupled knowledge distillation. We distill the target and nontarget class knowledge separately to eliminate the influence of the target class prediction results on the transfer of the nontarget class knowledge. This approach achieves efficient model compression. With 67% fewer parameters and only 1.2 G of computation, the model proposed in this paper still has a 87.6% success rate, while improving the model inference speed.

Michael J. Warren, Birds in Medieval English Poetry: Metaphors, Realities, Transformations. Woodbridge: D.S. Brewer, 2018, 259 pp.

Michael J. Warren has written an ecocritical, literary study of birds in medieval English poetry. He emphasizes the “real birds” evoked by literary representations. While he acknowledges the “metaphoric” category of birds, encompassing avian symbolism, allegory, and anthropomorphism in verse, he repeatedly returns to the real qualities of birds known in England and represented in selected poems, paying special attention to The Seafarer, the Exeter Riddles, The Owl and the Nightingale, Chaucer’s Parliament of Fowls, and the stories of human-to-bird transformations in Gower’s Confessio Amantis, particularly those of Alcyone and Ceyx and Tereus, Procne, and Philomela.

Welfare of domestic birds and rabbits transported in containers.

This opinion, produced upon a request from the European Commission, focuses on transport of domestic birds and rabbits in containers (e.g. any crate, box, receptacle or other rigid structure used for the transport of animals, but not the means of transport itself). It describes and assesses current transport practices in the EU, based on data from literature, Member States and expert opinion. The species and categories of domestic birds assessed were mainly chickens for meat (broilers), end‐of‐lay hens and day‐old chicks. They included to a lesser extent pullets, turkeys, ducks, geese, quails and game birds, due to limited scientific evidence. The opinion focuses on road transport to slaughterhouses or to production sites. For day‐old chicks, air transport is also addressed. The relevant stages of transport considered are preparation, loading, journey, arrival and uncrating. Welfare consequences associated with current transport practices were identified for each stage. For loading and uncrating, the highly relevant welfare consequences identified are handling stress, injuries, restriction of movement and sensory overstimulation. For the journey and arrival, injuries, restriction of movement, sensory overstimulation, motion stress, heat stress, cold stress, prolonged hunger and prolonged thirst are identified as highly relevant. For each welfare consequence, animal‐based measures (ABMs) and hazards were identified and assessed, and both preventive and corrective or mitigative measures proposed. Recommendations on quantitative criteria to prevent or mitigate welfare consequences are provided for microclimatic conditions, space allowances and journey times for all categories of animals, where scientific evidence and expert opinion support such outcomes.

Avian diversity and bird-aircraft strike problems in Bahir Dar International Airport, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia

BackgroundBahir Dar International Airport and its surrounding habitats are known for their rich avifaunal diversity, which results in bird-aircraft collisions as a fundamental problem in the area. A study on bird diversity and bird-aircraft strikes at Bahir Dar International Airport was conducted between February 2020 and August 2020. Based on its vegetation structures, the study area was classified into four habitat types namely; bushland, grassland, wetland, and modified habitats. Transect and point count methods were used to collect data on avian diversity and abundance. Questionnaire surveys, interviews, and document analysis were used to gather information about incidents and protection measures against bird-aircraft strike problems. Shannon–Wiener diversity index, Simpson’s similarity index, ANOVA, and chi-square test were used for data analysis.ResultsA total of 80 avian species belonging to 15 orders and 40 families were identified in the study area. The highest species diversity (H’ = 3.59) and species evenness (E = 0.96) were recorded in modified habitats during the wet season. Relative abundance categories of birds in the study area showed that most were uncommon birds. Birds pose severe threats to aircraft in the airport and 92.3% of the respondents replied that most bird-aircraft strikes occurred early in the morning and late in the afternoon when birds remain more active. The majority (88.5%) of questionnaire participants confirmed that bird-aircraft strike incidents frequently occurred during the time of takeoff and landing of the aircraft. It is also known that on average forty bird-aircraft collisions per year happen at the airport.ConclusionBahir Dar International Airport is rich in its bird diversity that recalls the aviation authority to work in collaboration with different organizations to avoid bird-aircraft strike problems using different control measures without compromising the conservation of birds.

Recognition of Different Bird Category Using Image Processing

People like to do bird watching but to identify bird species they need help of Zoological Science. Bird watching gives health benefits which we get by enjoying nature. Species identification is a challenging task which may result in many different labels. Sometimes even experts may disagree on species. It is both difficult of humans and computers that hit the limit of visual abilities. Hence, to help the bird spectator, we have developed deep learning based algorithms using the concept of image processing that help in identifying bird species. It will recognize the input image by comparing the model with a trained model and then predict the bird species. All the details of the bird will be displayed as an output. Also, it will help us to create dataset if any image captured or uploaded by user is missing in dataset then user can add that image to dataset.

Attention and platypuses.

This perspective piece discusses a set of attentional phenomena that are not easily accommodated within current theories of attentional selection. We call these phenomena attentional platypuses, as they allude to an observation that within biological taxonomies the platypus does not fit into either mammal or bird categories. Similarly, attentional phenomena that do not fit neatly within current attentional models suggest that current models are in need of a revision. We list a few instances of the "attentional platypuses" and then offer a new approach, that we term dynamically weighted prioritization, stipulating that multiple factors impinge onto the attentional priority map, each with a corresponding weight. The interaction between factors and their corresponding weights determines the current state of the priority map which subsequently constrains/guides attentional allocation. We propose that this new approach should be considered as a supplement to existing models of attention, especially those that emphasize categorical organizations. This article is categorized under: Psychology > Attention Psychology > Perception and Psychophysics Neuroscience > Cognition.

Factors Affecting Avifaunal Diversity in Selected Agro-Ecosystems of Himachal Pradesh Agricultural University, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India

Avifaunal diversity in eight different habitats of Himachal Pradesh Agricultural University, Palampur was studied in order to find factors affecting the occurrence of bird species. Bird populations were sampled in different agro-ecosystems such as farm fields (experimental and organic), wetland, abandoned tea plantation, administration area, playground, secondary forest and stream vegetation. A total of 125 species of birds belonging to 51 families, including 33 winter visitors and 27 summer visitors have been recorded. Among them, 78 insectivores followed by 18 carnivores were recorded. The abandoned tea field was a diverse habitat that maintained the highest species richness recording 50 species, followed by stream vegetation and organic farm. Seasonal variations and habitat heterogeneity play crucial role in shaping species richness. Plant diversity, vegetation structure and microhabitats support different feeding guilds, temporary refuge and migratory route which result in increased bird diversity. Based on different categories of birds, the cluster analysis revealed three distinct clusters of habitats, first cluster containing administration area and secondary forest habitats, experimental farm and wetland grouped in cluster II, whereas cluster III contained habitats viz. abandoned tea plantation, playground, organic farm and stream vegetation. Several conservation measures such as increasing plant diversity, conducting regular and long-term systematic studies, introducing bird friendly management plan are recommended to conserve and enhance avifaunal diversity in the university.

Carrier Concept in Hindu Religious Scriptures and Sculpture: A Conspectus

The relationship between man and bioresources (plants and animals) based on faith, belief, and tradition concerning gods and goddesses and other such powers are very intense, vast, and multifarious. The paper has a brief account of faith related to carrier or vahana in Hindu religious scriptures and sculpture. A total of 32 animals, ten different categories of birds, and only one plant (flower) are identified, playing the role of carriers of gods and goddesses of the Hindu pantheon. It is discussed that such faith, belief, and practice have a scientific basis and are helpful for the management and preservation of biodiversity.

Evolution of emotion semantics

Humans possess the unique ability to communicate emotions through language. Although concepts like anger or awe are abstract, there is a shared consensus about what these English emotion words mean. This consensus may give the impression that their meaning is static, but we propose this is not the case. We cannot travel back to earlier periods to study emotion concepts directly, but we can examine text corpora, which have partially preserved the meaning of emotion words. Using natural language processing of historical text, we found evidence for semantic change in emotion words over the past century and that varying rates of change were predicted in part by an emotion concept's prototypicality—how representative it is of the broader category of “emotion”. Prototypicality negatively correlated with historical rates of emotion semantic change obtained from text-based word embeddings, beyond more established variables including usage frequency in English and a second comparison language, French. This effect for prototypicality did not consistently extend to the semantic category of birds, suggesting its relevance for predicting semantic change may be category-dependent. Our results suggest emotion semantics are evolving over time, with prototypical emotion words remaining semantically stable, while other emotion words evolve more freely.

A comprehensive review on avian chlamydiosis: a neglected zoonotic disease.

Avian chlamydiosis is one of the important neglected diseases with critical zoonotic potential. Chlamydia psittaci, the causative agent, affects most categories of birds, livestock, companion animals, and humans. It has many obscured characters and epidemiological dimensions, which makes it unique among other bacterial agents. Recent reports on transmission from equine to humans alarmed the public health authorities, and it necessitates the importance of routine screening of this infectious disease. High prevalence of spill-over infection in equines was associated with reproductive losses. Newer avian chlamydial species are being reported in the recent years. It is a potential biological warfare agent and the disease is an occupational hazard mainly to custom officers handling exotic birds. Prevalence of the disease in wild birds, pet birds, and poultry causes economic losses to the poultry industry and the pet bird trade. Interestingly, there are speculations on the ‘legal’ and ‘illegal’ bird trade that may be the global source of some of the most virulent strains of this pathogen. The mortality rate generally ranges from 5 to 40% in untreated cases, but it can sometimes be higher in co-infection. The intracellular lifestyle of this pathogen makes the diagnosis more complicated and there is also lack of accurate diagnostics. Resistance to antibiotics is reported only in some pathogens of the Chlamydiaceae family, but routine screening may assess the actual situation in all pathogens. Due to the diverse nature of the pathogen, the organism necessitates the One Health partnerships to have complete understanding. The present review focuses on the zoonotic aspects of avian chlamydiosis with its new insights into the pathogenesis, transmission, treatment, prevention, and control strategies. The review also briefs on the basic understandings and complex epidemiology of avian chlamydiosis, highlighting the need for research on emerging one health perspectives.

MobileNets: Efficient Convolutional Neural Network for Identification of Protected Birds

Wildlife trade is one of the main factors causing endangered bird species. In Indonesia, trade has caused 28 bird species to be classified in the endangered bird category. Protection efforts have been made with the establishment of 564 species of Indonesian birds as protected birds. For law enforcement, certainty is needed in the identification of these bird species. This study begins with a Forum of Discussion Groups from relevant institutions in Java and Bali to determine the types of protected birds that are prioritized to developed in this application. Based on the results of the Forum of Discussion Group, a bird photo dataset compiled using 17 categories or types of bird photos as prioritized in this study. The method used in this study is the Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) method, which combined the structure of MobileNet and the weight of the network that has previously trained using ImageNet. The results of this study are the differences of results between CNN standards and those combined with the structure of MobileNet. For better accuracy, using the CNN standard, which is around 98.38% for the accuracy of the training, while in terms of size, combined with MobileNet has a relatively smaller model size, which is 68 megabytes.

Property inference from heads to opaque-transparent compounds

AbstractWe investigate how people extend properties from head nouns to compound words. Two conflicting principles seem to be important. Concepts license inference of properties: Knowing that birds fly allows an inference that songbirds fly. On the other hand, a subcategory term like songbirds is created only when that subcategory contrasts with the general category of birds. Participants rate the extent to which properties true of all, some, or no members of the head noun category are true of a subcategory denoted by an Opaque-Transparent compound. Both categorical inference and contrast affect these judgments: Properties true of the head are less true of the compound though still generally true, while those false of the head are more true of the compound, though still generally false. We discuss how modification effects with Opaque-Transparent compounds compare to both Transparent-Transparent compounds and novel combinations.

Birds as status symbols in northern France: Boves Castle during the High Middle Ages, in its regional context

Boves Castle, located in northern France, was occupied between the 9th and 16th centuries AD. Under excavation since 1996, this high-status site has yielded more than six tons of faunal remains. Until now, archaeozoological studies have focused on the early occupation of the site (10th and 11th centuries AD), revealing specific supply and consumption strategies, widely based around birds. Aside from the very large amount of domestic fowl, Boves Castle is distinguished by the number and diversity of wild birds from various environments, including wetland, coastal, forested and anthropized areas. However, the special feature of this site is the importance of freshwater birds, especially large waders, which remained a status symbol until modern times in this region. On the basis of this outstanding example, and other high-status sites from the same region, we aim to discuss the importance and status of various domestic and game bird categories in northern France during the High Middle Ages. We will also address the subject of controlled hunting areas around castles and other high-status consumer sites, for a better understanding of the link between power and consumption during the medieval period.

The influence of building density on Neotropical bird communities found in small urban parks

Urban green spaces provide a habitat for a wide variety of bird species. However, changes in characteristics of the surrounding urban morphology could influence the contribution of such green spaces. In particular, bird communities inhabiting small urban parks (SUPs) may be vulnerable, given the high exposure of these spaces to surrounding conditions. In Neotropical cities, the influence of urban-matrix characteristics on bird communities found in SUPs is relatively unknown. In this study, we explored if an increase in surrounding urban matrix variables, such as building densities, average building height, and road coverage around SUPs, negatively influenced the richness and abundance of the bird communities inhabiting them. We tested the effects of matrix and several site-level variables (e.g., vegetation diversity) across 60 SUPs in Santiago, Chile. As the matrix around a SUP had increased building densities, bird richness and abundance of native and insectivorous species decreased and invasive, urban-dweller, and omnivorous species increased. As road coverage increased, both the richness and abundance tended to decrease across all bird categories. For site-level variables, SUP size, distance to nearest SUP, and native vegetation diversity had a significant effect on several bird categories. Our results indicate that city planners may need to take into account both the surrounding urban matrix and site-level characteristics in order to improve bird diversity within SUPs.

Foraging Behaviour based Management Strategy to Minimize Crop Damage Caused by Indian Pea Fowl (Pavo cristatus)

Gradual increase of Indian peafowl population across low country dry zone of Sri Lanka and expansion of their distribution throughout the country caused many problems. Their omnivorous feeding habit leads to economic loss to the farmers. Objectives of the study were to investigate a management strategy based on the foraging behaviour (FB) to minimize crop damage and to understand the cultural significance in controlling them. A survey was conducted in 4 Divisional Secretariat (DS) Divisions in Vavuniya district based on a structured type questionnaire (n=160). Foraging behaviour was studied for 3 months covering morning (006-008 hrs), mid-day (11:30-13:30 hrs) and evening (1600- 1800 hrs) by direct visual scans of male, female and juvenile bird categories. There were significant differences (p<0.05) between the time of peafowl attack, the sex, the stage of peafowl with type of plant damaged. Peak activity (63%) was recorded during morning while it was 36% in the evening and 1% during mid-day. The food eaten is diverse and consisted of a mixture of plant and animal matter that includes variety of plants, beetles, snakes, snails, worms etc. in which bulk was consisted of plant parts. Rice (83.5%), cereals (62.5), spicy crops (33%) and leafy vegetables (19.5%), plantation crops (14%), vegetables (12.5 %), legumes (11%) were most affected by peafowl while less on tubers (6%). Young peafowl mostly attack (90%) lower level and adults mostly attack (67%) upper level vegetation. Furthermore, the other problems caused by peafowl recorded were as parasite spreader (40%), noisy problem (39.50%), damage vehicles (29.7%) and damage houses (6.5%). Irrespective of the ethnic group, all were respected peafowl due to religious reasons. Respondents were suggested chasing out (63.50%), hitting (9.50%), trapping (2.25%) and death (1%) as controlling measures. It is concluded that fixing water sprinklers and operate them in the morning along with cultivation of replant plants around boundaries of crops can be suggested as management strategy to minimize crop damage. Meantime it is suggested conserving them in forests by maintaining large tracts in scrub forests and associated grasslands with water bodies.

Foraging Behavior of Nightingales (Luscinia Supergenus): An Experimental Study

Abstract—Foraging techniques influence the morphological peculiarities and ecological specialization of species, also determining their organization in a community. The foraging behavior of forest ground insectivorous birds remains the least explored due to the difficulty of observing them in the wild. We studied the foraging behavior of four nightingale species in an outdoor aviary where they were given a choice of typical foraging substrates. Two categories of young birds took part in the experiment: hand-raised and wild birds. Five aspects of behavior were recorded: foraging intensity, structure of background activity, attack maneuvers, attack direction, and substrate preference. The coefficients for converting the noted activity into energy expenditure units were developed. The behavioral parameters, except for the intensity of foraging, were expressed as the proportion of total energy expenditure for a given behavioral aspect, reducing the variation of these parameters related to a change in activity. Three principal components explain more than three-quarters of the interspecific differences in individual behavioral parameters. The first component corresponds to the foraging intensity and ranks the species according to decreasing body mass. The second component distinguishes the tactics of the Siberian Rubythroat as complex exploration of dense vegetation thickets from the tactics of the Rufous-tailed Robin as detailed extensive ground surface exploration. The third component contrasts the tactics of the Bluethroat (alternation of moving, waiting, and long sally-hovers) to the tactics of the Siberian Blue Robin (intensive short aerial attacks). The species-specific foraging traits appear in young birds independently of the wildlife experience. While learning by doing, they increase the foraging intensity and strengthen specific behavioral traits. The type of substrate determined the foraging intensity and ratio of the expenditure for search, movement, and attacks. Foraging techniques and their direction are correlated with other behavioral aspects, but are partly determined by the preference of specific preys and their properties. Despite the well-marked distinctions, the foraging niches of the nightingales strongly overlap; i.e., each behavioral aspect of the species studied is dominated by basic, less specialized elements.

When stimulus-driven control settings compete: On the dominance of categories as cues for control.

Stimulus-driven or reactive control refers to the modulation of attention poststimulus onset via retrieval of learned control settings associated with task stimuli. The present study asked which stimulus-driven control setting "wins" the competition when more than 1 is available to guide attention. Utilizing an item-specific proportion congruence manipulation in a picture-word Stroop task, 7 experiments examined competition between item-level and category-level control settings. In Experiment 1, category-level control dominated as evidenced by transfer of control to unique 50% congruent items (exemplars) from biased (33% or 67% congruent) animal categories. In Experiment 2, the dominance persisted-transfer was observed even for inconsistent transfer items (e.g., 83% congruent bird from a 33% congruent bird category). Recategorization of the exemplars prior to the Stroop task (Experiment 3a) successfully shifted the dominance to item-level control as did changing the Stroop task goal (Experiment 4a); however, exposure to the exemplars (Experiment 3b) and individuation training prior to the Stroop task did not (Experiments 3c and 4b). These novel findings suggest category-level control dominates in guiding attention poststimulus onset, but this dominance is dependent on contextual features (i.e., mutable). We propose a salience account of dominance and discuss implications for item-based computational models. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Preliminary coproscopic examination of ornamental birds in Alexandria Province, Egypt

Recently, the attention for ornamental birds has increased significantly. This in turn has been reflected in the growth of their trade, and has become a good source of cash income for owners and traders on a small scale. However, there was no attention for studying the parasites that infecting these categories of birds. The current study aims to study the parasites infecting the ornamental birds particularly, the gastrointestinal parasites that infecting these birds. Since 100 fresh fecal samples of 10 species of birds were collected during period from April to September 2016 from pet-shops at Alexandria Province, Egypt. The current study revealed that, the overall incidence of gastrointestinal parasites was 31% and the infestation was concentrated only in 8 species where cockatiel spp recorded the highest incidence (64.7%) followed by Hamam hazaz (50%) then Fisher rose (44.44%), Zebra spp (40 %), Australly (35 %) finally, 20 % was for Gawa spp. Whereas Redram pet, Canary and Badgy recorded no infestation rate at all. The infestation was restricted in three groups of endoparasites (Protozoa are represented in Eimeria, Trematodes are represented in Echinostoma and Nematodes are represented in Ascaridia and Contracaecum spp).

What a Little Bird Tells Us About Symbolic Thought: the Russet-Capped Stubtail (Tesia everetti) in Nage Augury, Myth, and Metaphor

Among symbolic representations of animals, birds appear to play a disproportionately large part. This paper explores the symbolism of a particular bird, the Russet-capped Stubtail (Tesia everetti), among the Nage of eastern Indonesia. The stubtail features in several contexts of Nage augury, myth, and metaphor but, in each instance, it stands in opposition to another bird category (or, more specifically, “folk-generic”). I also show how different symbolic contexts, in which the stubtail occurs, reflect different physical and behavioral features of this bird. Although the focus is a single small bird, the paper reviews and discusses several features of symbolic thought in general, giving attention especially to the ways symbolic knowledge of animals is mentally constructed differently from knowledge that informs folk taxonomies.