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Drone monitoring of breeding waterbird populations

Waterbird communities are potential indicators of ecological changes in threatened wetland ecosystems and a potential object of ecological monitoring programs. Waterbirds often breed in largely...

Asymmetric iris heterochromia in birds

For the first time the unique coloured pattern of the iris of buttonquails (Turnicidae) is described. This unique pattern is due to the presence of a dark-brown crescent in the iris below the...

Unprecedented high catecholamine production causing hair pigmentation after urinary excretion in red deer

Hormones have not been found in concentrations of orders of magnitude higher than nanograms per milliliter. This study reports urine concentrations of a catecholamine (norepinephrine) ranging from...

European Honey-buzzards use tools to attract ants for anting

Examples of tool-use behaviours by animals outside foraging contexts are scarce and almos exclusively limited to primates. This work documents a case of tool use in the European Honey-buzzard...

Global geographic patterns in the colours and sizes of animal dispersed fruits

Fruit colours attract animal seed dispersers, yet the causes of fruit colour diversity remain controversial. The lack of knowledge of large?scale spatial patterns in fruit colours has limited our...