T. R. Birkhead
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View article: Ecosystems mediate climate impacts on northern hemisphere seabirds
Ecosystems mediate climate impacts on northern hemisphere seabirds Open
Ecosystem structure and biophysical processes mediate biological responses to climate changes, but few studies have examined impacts of this dynamic among upper trophic levels. We investigated ecosystem differences in how diverse seabird p…
View article: A Neolithic rock engraving apparently showing a Great Auk being captured
A Neolithic rock engraving apparently showing a Great Auk being captured Open
We evaluate whether a Neolithic engraved rock image at the Alta archaeological site in Finnmark, Norway – of a bird being held by a person – represents a Great Auk Pinguinus impennis. There are several thousand engraved animal figures at A…
View article: Long‐term multi‐species demographic studies reveal divergent negative impacts of winter storms on seabird survival
Long‐term multi‐species demographic studies reveal divergent negative impacts of winter storms on seabird survival Open
Understanding storm impacts on marine vertebrate demography requires detailed meteorological data in tandem with long‐term population monitoring. Yet most studies use storm proxies such as the North Atlantic Oscillation Index (NAOI), poten…
View article: Estimating the mass of the Great Auk (<i>Pinguinus impennis</i>) and its egg
Estimating the mass of the Great Auk (<i>Pinguinus impennis</i>) and its egg Open
The body mass and egg mass of the Great Auk Pinguinus impennis were never measured before the bird was driven to extinction in 1844. Previous studies conducted before 1990 used data from related species to estimate the mass of an adult bir…
View article: A new foundation for the study of bird behaviour: Konrad Lorenz’s ‘Kumpan’ paper of 1935
A new foundation for the study of bird behaviour: Konrad Lorenz’s ‘Kumpan’ paper of 1935 Open
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Konrad Lorenz, Niko Tinbergen and Karl von Frisch in 1973 for their pioneering work during the 1930s and 1940s, in the study of animal behaviour. Lorenz established the foundations o…
View article: Data from: Birkhead TR, Montgomerie RD 2023 Census counts of Common Murres adjusted for timing of breeding are more accurate than counts based on calendar dates. Ornithological Applications 125:duad036. https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithapp/duad036
Data from: Birkhead TR, Montgomerie RD 2023 Census counts of Common Murres adjusted for timing of breeding are more accurate than counts based on calendar dates. Ornithological Applications 125:duad036. https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithapp/duad036 Open
Climate change has resulted in marked advancement in the breeding phenology of some bird species. Changes in the timing of breeding can have important biological effects, for example causing mismatches from the food supply. Using data and …
View article: As rare as hen’s teeth: aberrantly coloured eggs of the northern lapwing (<i>Vanellus vanellus</i>) and the interface between oology and ornithology
As rare as hen’s teeth: aberrantly coloured eggs of the northern lapwing (<i>Vanellus vanellus</i>) and the interface between oology and ornithology Open
The majority of birds lay eggs of a colour and maculation “typical” of their species, but very occasionally individual females produce eggs of unusual colours. In the past, such eggs were often the target of egg collectors. Four trays of u…
View article: The Ornithologist Francis Willughby’s Visit to the ‘Bird Paradise’ of Zevenhuizen in June 1663
The Ornithologist Francis Willughby’s Visit to the ‘Bird Paradise’ of Zevenhuizen in June 1663 Open
This article documents the visit in 1663 by the English naturalists Francis Willughby, John Ray and two other colleagues to Zevenhuizen, an area of woodland managed by the local nobility for the production of waterbirds for human consumpti…
View article: The Great Auk (<i>Pinguinus impennis</i>) had two brood patches, not one: confirmation and implications
The Great Auk (<i>Pinguinus impennis</i>) had two brood patches, not one: confirmation and implications Open
Since the late 1600s it has been assumed that the Great Auk Pinguinus impennis was similar to the Common Guillemot Uria aalge and Brünnich's Guillemot Uria lomvia in having a single, central brood patch. Through the examination of eight mo…
View article: Correction to: A trade-off between thickness and length in the zebra finch sperm mid-piece
Correction to: A trade-off between thickness and length in the zebra finch sperm mid-piece Open
The original article contains a typographical mistake in the formula notation for the volume of the sperm mitochondrial helix. In the discussion (paragraph 6), we refer to the formula as 'ν = (1/3)π(r2)T'; however, the formula used in our …
View article: Three decades of sperm competition in birds
Three decades of sperm competition in birds Open
In the three decades, since Birkhead and Møller published Sperm competition in birds (1992, Academic Press) more than 1000 papers have been published on this topic, about half of these being empirical studies focused on extrapair paternity…
View article: Extraordinary sperm to egg ratios in seabirds
Extraordinary sperm to egg ratios in seabirds Open
Following copulation, females of many seabird species spend a prolonged period of time away from the colony, building up reserves for egg formation and incubation. Here, we report that the number of sperm associated with eggs of single-egg…
View article: Avian egg collections: museum collection bias driven by shape and size
Avian egg collections: museum collection bias driven by shape and size Open
Avian eggs exhibit substantial intra‐ and interspecific variation in shape, size and colour. Considerable efforts have been made to better understand the evolutionary drivers behind such variation, often using museum egg collections. Usual…
View article: New insights from old eggs – the shape and thickness of Great Auk <i>Pinguinus impennis</i> eggs
New insights from old eggs – the shape and thickness of Great Auk <i>Pinguinus impennis</i> eggs Open
We compared the shape and eggshell thickness of Great Auk Pinguinus impennis eggs with those of its closest relatives, the Razorbill Alca torda , Common Guillemot Uria aalge and Brünnich's Guillemot Uria lomvia , in order to gain additiona…
View article: Full Issue
Full Issue Open
The Hastings Rarities-taking the long view.He explained that is now more than 50 years since hundreds of bird records were dismissed as potentially fraudulent on the grounds that it was unlikely that so many rare species would turn up with…
View article: Subtle Egg‐Shell Membrane Structures in Birds’ Eggs
Subtle Egg‐Shell Membrane Structures in Birds’ Eggs Open
In 1695 the Italian anatomist and physician Lorenzo Bellini published an account of the ‘airways’ in birds’ eggs. Bellini suggested that these structures — that appear as dark channels running between the inner surface of the eggshell and …
View article: Accurately quantifying the shape of birds’ eggs
Accurately quantifying the shape of birds’ eggs Open
Describing the range of avian egg shapes quantitatively has long been recognized as difficult. A variety of approaches has been adopted, some of which aim to capture the shape accurately and some to provide intelligible indices of shape. T…
View article: The pyriform egg of the Common Murre (<i>Uria aalge</i>) is more stable on sloping surfaces
The pyriform egg of the Common Murre (<i>Uria aalge</i>) is more stable on sloping surfaces Open
The adaptive significance of avian egg shape is a long-standing problem in biology. For many years, it was widely believed that the pyriform shape of the Common Murre (Uria aalge) egg allowed it to either "spin like a top" or "roll in an a…
View article: A trade-off between thickness and length in the zebra finch sperm mid-piece
A trade-off between thickness and length in the zebra finch sperm mid-piece Open
The sperm mid-piece has traditionally been considered to be the engine that powers sperm. Larger mid-pieces have therefore been assumed to provide greater energetic capacity. However, in the zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata , a recent study…
View article: All Our Eggs In One Basket: Challenges of High Resolution X-Ray Micro-Computed Tomography of Great Auk Pinguinus impennis Eggshell
All Our Eggs In One Basket: Challenges of High Resolution X-Ray Micro-Computed Tomography of Great Auk Pinguinus impennis Eggshell Open
High resolution X-ray micro-computed tomography gives the ability to research objects in unprecedented detail in 3D without damaging them but applying these new techniques to specimens can be complex. In 2017 the Natural History Museum (NH…
View article: Data from: The pyriform egg of the Common Murre (Uria aalge) is more stable on sloping surfaces
Data from: The pyriform egg of the Common Murre (Uria aalge) is more stable on sloping surfaces Open
The adaptive significance of avian egg shape is a long-standing problem in biology. For many years, it was widely believed that the pyriform shape of the Common Murre (Uria aalge) egg allowed it to either “spin like a top” or “roll in an a…
View article: Correction to ‘Intra-ejaculate sperm selection in female zebra finches’
Correction to ‘Intra-ejaculate sperm selection in female zebra finches’ Open
View article: Three early books on birds’ eggs: Marsili’s <i>Danubius Pannonico-Mysicus</i> (1726), Zinanni’s <i>Delle Uova e dei Nidi degli Uccelli</i> (1737) and Klein’s <i>Ova avium plurimarum ad naturalem magnitudinem delineata et genuinis coloribus picta</i> (1766)
Three early books on birds’ eggs: Marsili’s <i>Danubius Pannonico-Mysicus</i> (1726), Zinanni’s <i>Delle Uova e dei Nidi degli Uccelli</i> (1737) and Klein’s <i>Ova avium plurimarum ad naturalem magnitudinem delineata et genuinis coloribus picta</i> (1766) Open
The three earliest – all eighteenth-century – illustrated accounts of birds' eggs were by Luigi Marsili (or Marsigli): Danubius Pannonico-Mysicus, Giuseppe Zinanni (or Ginanni): Delle Uova e dei Ni...
View article: Supplementary material from "A trade-off between thickness and length in the zebra finch sperm mid-piece"
Supplementary material from "A trade-off between thickness and length in the zebra finch sperm mid-piece" Open
The sperm mid-piece has traditionally been considered to be the engine that powers sperm. Larger mid-pieces have therefore been assumed to provide greater energetic capacity. However, in the zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata, a recent…
View article: Differential sperm storage by female zebra finches <i>Taeniopygia guttata</i>
Differential sperm storage by female zebra finches <i>Taeniopygia guttata</i> Open
When females mate promiscuously, female sperm storage provides scope to bias the fertilization success towards particular males via the non-random acceptance and utilization of sperm. The difficulties observing post-copulatory processes wi…
View article: Allopreening in birds is associated with parental cooperation over offspring care and stable pair bonds across years
Allopreening in birds is associated with parental cooperation over offspring care and stable pair bonds across years Open
Individuals of many species form bonds with their breeding partners, yet the mechanisms maintaining these bonds are poorly understood. In birds, allopreening is a conspicuous feature of interactions between breeding partners and has been h…
View article: The point of a Guillemot's egg
The point of a Guillemot's egg Open
The adaptive significance of avian egg shape in birds is poorly understood. The pyriform (pear‐like) shape of the Common Guillemot's Uria aalge egg has long been considered to be an adaptation to prevent eggs rolling off the bare cliff led…
View article: Egg shape in the Common Guillemot Uria aalge and Brunnich’s Guillemot U. lomvia: not a rolling matter?
Egg shape in the Common Guillemot Uria aalge and Brunnich’s Guillemot U. lomvia: not a rolling matter? Open
The adaptive significance of avian egg shape is
\npoorly understood, and has been studied only in those
\nspecies producing pyriform (pear-shaped, or pointed) eggs:
\nwaders and guillemots (murres) Uria spp., albeit to a
\nlimited extent. …
View article: Supplementary material from "Differential sperm storage by female zebra finches <i>Taeniopygia guttata</i>"
Supplementary material from "Differential sperm storage by female zebra finches <i>Taeniopygia guttata</i>" Open
When females mate promiscuously, female sperm storage provides scope to bias the fertilization success towards particular males via the non-random acceptance and utilization of sperm. The difficulties observing post-copulatory processes wi…
View article: Sperm morphology, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) concentration and swimming velocity: unexpected relationships in a passerine bird
Sperm morphology, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) concentration and swimming velocity: unexpected relationships in a passerine bird Open
The relationship between sperm energetics and sperm function is poorly known, but is central to our understanding of the evolution of sperm traits. The aim of this study was to examine how sperm morphology and ATP content affect sperm swim…