Biology Of The Ubiquitous House Sparrow

Author : Ted R. Anderson
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780198041351
Total Pages : 560 pages
Book Rating : 4.57/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Biology of the Ubiquitous House Sparrow written by Ted R. Anderson and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2006-08-10 with total page 560 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After the chicken, the House Sparrow is the most widely distributed bird species in the world, occurring on all continents except Antarctica and on most human-inhabited islands. Although its Latin name is Passer domesticus, it is certainly not domesticated. In fact, it is widely regarded as a pest species and is consequently not protected in most of its extensive range. This combination of ubiquity and minimal legal protection has contributed to its wide use in studies by avian biologists throughout the world. The purpose of this book is to review and summarize the results of these global studies on House Sparrows, and to provide a springboard for future studies on the species. House Sparrows have been used to study natural selection in introduced species, circadian rhythms, and the neuroendocrine control of the avian annual cycle. One current question of considerable interest concerns the catastrophic House Sparrow population declines in several urban centers in Europe. Is the House Sparrow a contemporary canary in the mine? Other topics of broad interest include the reproductive and flock-foraging strategies of sparrows, and sexual selection and the function of the male badge in the species. Anderson also explores the role of the House Sparrow in disease transmission to humans and their domesticated animals.

Author : Jan Thornhill
Publisher : Groundwood Books Ltd
ISBN 13 : 1773062913
Total Pages : 45 pages
Book Rating : 4.14/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Triumphant Tale of the House Sparrow written by Jan Thornhill and published by Groundwood Books Ltd. This book was released on 2019-11-15 with total page 45 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “The content encourages us to reflect upon and evaluate the relationship between human beings and animals. This book leaves us with admiration for this feisty bird and hope for our world.” — Friends Journal Behold the most despised bird in human history! So begins Jan Thornhill’s riveting, beautifully illustrated story of the House Sparrow. She traces the history of this perky little bird, one of the most adaptable creatures on Earth, from its beginnings in the Middle East to its spread with the growth of agriculture into India, North Africa and Europe. Everywhere the House Sparrow went, it competed with humans for grain, becoming such a pest that in some places “sparrow catcher” became an actual job and bounties were paid to those who got rid of it. But not everyone hated the House Sparrow, and in 1852, fifty pairs were released in New York City. In no time at all, the bird had spread from coast to coast. Then suddenly, at the turn of the century, as cars took over from horses and there was less grain to be found, its numbers began to decline. As our homes, gardens, cities and farmland have changed, providing fewer nesting and feeding opportunities, the House Sparrow’s numbers have begun to decline again — though in England and Holland this decline appears to be slowing. Perhaps this clever little bird is simply adapting once more. This fascinating book includes the life history of the House Sparrow and descriptions of how the Ancient Egyptians fed it to the animals they later mummified, how it traveled to Great Britain as a stowaway on ships carrying Roman soldiers, and how its cousin, the Eurasian Tree Sparrow, was almost eradicated in China when Mao declared war on it. A wealth of back matter material is also supplied. Key Text Features map glossary references resources further information Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.3 Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.7 Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur). CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.3 Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.3 Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text. CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.6.2 Determine a central idea of a text and how it is conveyed through particular details; provide a summary of the text distinct from personal opinions or judgments.

Author : Kim Todd
Publisher : Reaktion Books
ISBN 13 : 1861899777
Total Pages : 194 pages
Book Rating : 4.74/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Sparrow written by Kim Todd and published by Reaktion Books. This book was released on 2013-02-15 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Innocent. Invader. Lover. Thief. Sparrows are everywhere and wear many guises. Able to live in the Arctic and the desert, from Beijing to San Francisco, the house sparrow is the most ubiquitous wild bird in the world. They are the subject of elegies by Catullus and John Skelton and listed as “pretty things” in Sei Shonagon’s Pillow Book—but they’re also urban vermin with shocking manners that were so reviled that Mao placed them on the list of Four Pests and ordered the Chinese people to kill them on sight. In Sparrow, award-winning science and natural history writer Kim Todd explores the bird's complex history, biology, and literary tradition. Todd describes the difference between Old World sparrows, like the house sparrow, which can nest in a garage or in an airport, and New World sparrows, which often stake their claim to remote islands or meadows in the high Sierra. In addition, she looks at the nineteenth-century Sparrow War in the United States—a battle over the sparrow’s introduction—which set the stage for decades of discussions of invasive species. She examines the ways in which sparrows have taught us about evolution and the shocking recent decline of house sparrows in cities globally—this disappearance of a bird that seemed hardwired for success remains an ornithological mystery. With lush illustrations, ranging from early woodcuts and illuminated manuscripts to contemporary wildlife photography, this is the first book-length exploration of the natural and cultural history of this beloved, reviled, and ubiquitous bird.

Author : Peter S. Alagona
Publisher : Univ of California Press
ISBN 13 : 0520386329
Total Pages : 293 pages
Book Rating : 4.27/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Accidental Ecosystem written by Peter S. Alagona and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2022-04-19 with total page 293 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of Smithsonian Magazine's Favorite Books of 2022 With wildlife thriving in cities, we have the opportunity to create vibrant urban ecosystems that serve both people and animals. The Accidental Ecosystem tells the story of how cities across the United States went from having little wildlife to filling, dramatically and unexpectedly, with wild creatures. Today, many of these cities have more large and charismatic wild animals living in them than at any time in at least the past 150 years. Why have so many cities—the most artificial and human-dominated of all Earth’s ecosystems—grown rich with wildlife, even as wildlife has declined in most of the rest of the world? And what does this paradox mean for people, wildlife, and nature on our increasingly urban planet? The Accidental Ecosystem is the first book to explain this phenomenon from a deep historical perspective, and its focus includes a broad range of species and cities. Cities covered include New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, Austin, Miami, Chicago, Seattle, San Diego, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Baltimore. Digging into the natural history of cities and unpacking our conception of what it means to be wild, this book provides fascinating context for why animals are thriving more in cities than outside of them. Author Peter S. Alagona argues that the proliferation of animals in cities is largely the unintended result of human decisions that were made for reasons having little to do with the wild creatures themselves. Considering what it means to live in diverse, multispecies communities and exploring how human and nonhuman members of communities might thrive together, Alagona goes beyond the tension between those who embrace the surge in urban wildlife and those who think of animals as invasive or as public safety hazards. The Accidental Ecosystem calls on readers to reimagine interspecies coexistence in shared habitats, as well as policies that are based on just, humane, and sustainable approaches.

Author : J. D. Summers-Smith
Publisher : Collins
ISBN 13 : 9780007448869
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.64/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The House Sparrow written by J. D. Summers-Smith and published by Collins. This book was released on 2011-10-27 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Collins New Naturalist series is the longest-running and arguably the most influential natural history series in the world with over 100 volumes published in over 60 years. This edition is produced from an original copy by William Collins. While the mainstream New Naturalist volumes were initially intended to deal with broad subjects such as wild flowers, insects or National Parks, a parallel New Naturalist series of monographs on single species or related groups of species was also published between 1948 and 1971. There have been no additions since. Now, for the first time in over forty years, these best-selling volumes are available again. The New Naturalist monographs shared the same high standards of the main series and were envisioned as relatively short books of about 50,000 words, and in a smaller format than the main series. Artists Clifford and Rosemary Ellis were asked to design jackets for this series alongside the main series, which resulted in the same stunning, distinctive cover illustrations that had helped inspire an entire new generation of nature enthusiasts. The New Naturalist Monograph Series: 1 The Badger by Ernest Neal 2 The Redstart by John Buxton 3 The Wren by Edward A. Armstrong 4 The Yellow Wagtail by Stuart Smith 5 The Greenshank by Desmond Nethersole-Thompson 6 The Fulmar by James Fisher 7 Fleas, Flukes and Cuckoos by Miriam Rothschild and Theresa Clay 8 Ants by Derek Wragge Morley 9 The Herring Gull's World by Niko Tinbergen 10 Mumps, Measles and Mosaics by Kenneth M. Smith and Roy Markham 11 The Heron by Frank A. Lowe 12 Squirrels by Monica Shorten 13 The Rabbit by Harry V. Thompson and Alastair N. Worden 14 Birds of the London Area Since 1900 by R. C. Holmes and the London Natural History Society 15 The Hawfinch by Guy Mountfort 16 The Salmon by J. W. Jones 17 Lords & Ladies by Cecil T. Prime 18 Oysters by C. M. Yonge 19 The House Sparrow by J. D. Summers-Smith 20 The Wood Pigeon by R. K. Murton 21 The Trout by W. E. Frost and M. E. Brown 22 The Mole by Kenneth Mellanby

Author : Jan Thornhill
Publisher : Groundwood Books Ltd
ISBN 13 : 1773060074
Total Pages : 44 pages
Book Rating : 4.71/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Triumphant Tale of the House Sparrow written by Jan Thornhill and published by Groundwood Books Ltd. This book was released on 2018-04-01 with total page 44 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Behold the most despised bird in human history! So begins Jan Thornhill’s riveting, beautifully illustrated story of the House Sparrow. She traces the history of this perky little bird, one of the most adaptable creatures on Earth, from its beginnings in the Middle East to its spread with the growth of agriculture into India, North Africa and Europe. Everywhere the House Sparrow went, it competed with humans for grain, becoming such a pest that in some places “sparrow catcher” became an actual job and bounties were paid to those who got rid of it. But not everyone hated the House Sparrow, and in 1852, fifty pairs were released in New York City. In no time at all, the bird had spread from coast to coast. Then suddenly, at the turn of the century, as cars took over from horses and there was less grain to be found, its numbers began to decline. As our homes, gardens, cities and farmland have changed, providing fewer nesting and feeding opportunities, the House Sparrow’s numbers have begun to decline again — though in England and Holland this decline appears to be slowing. Perhaps this clever little bird is simply adapting once more. This fascinating book includes the life history of the House Sparrow and descriptions of how the Ancient Egyptians fed it to the animals they later mummified, how it traveled to Great Britain as a stowaway on ships carrying Roman soldiers, and how its cousin, the Eurasian Tree Sparrow, was almost eradicated in China when Mao declared war on it. A wealth of back matter material is also supplied.

Author : John Henry Gurney
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 106 pages
Book Rating : 4.81/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The House Sparrow written by John Henry Gurney and published by . This book was released on 1885 with total page 106 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : David Beadle
Publisher : Helm
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 340 pages
Book Rating : 4.57/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Sparrows of the United States and Canada written by David Beadle and published by Helm. This book was released on 2002 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The authors of A Guide to the Identification and Natural History of the Sparrows of the United States and Canada (1996) further pursue this region's 64 taxa of sparrows in this comprehensive collection of some 350 color photos; line drawings; and referenced entries specifying bird measurements, habitat, behavior, voice, similar species, geographic variation, distribution (with map), conservation status, molt, and hybrids. Rising is a zoologist at the U. of Toronto; Beadle is an independent birder and illustrator. Annotation copyrighted by Book News Inc., Portland, OR.

Author : Colleen T. Downs
Publisher : CABI
ISBN 13 : 1789242061
Total Pages : 399 pages
Book Rating : 4.65/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Invasive Birds written by Colleen T. Downs and published by CABI. This book was released on 2020-12-07 with total page 399 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Examining globally invasive alien birds, the first part of this book provides an account of 32 global avian invasive species (as listed by the Invasive Species Specialist Group, ISSG). It acts as a one stop reference volume; it assesses current invasive status for each bird species, including details of physical description, diet, introduction and invasion pathways, breeding behaviour, natural habitat. It also looks at the environmental impact of each species, as well as current and future control methods. Full colour photographs assist with species identification and global distribution maps give a visual representation of the current known distributions of these species. The second part of the book discusses the biogeographical aspects of avian invasions, highlighting current and emerging invasive species across different regions of the world. The third section considers the impact of invasive species on native communities, problems associated with invasive bird management and the use of citizen science in the study of invasive birds.

Author : Denis Summers-Smith
Publisher : A&C Black
ISBN 13 : 1408138255
Total Pages : 351 pages
Book Rating : 4.50/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Sparrows written by Denis Summers-Smith and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2010-11-30 with total page 351 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While Denis Summers-Smith's monograph The Sparrows presented his knowledge of sparrow biology, this volume tells the other, human, side of the tale. Denis Summers-Smith first took up the study of the House Sparrow in 1947, thinking that the difficulties of travel in post-war Britain would best suit the study of a species always close at hand. The humble House Sparrow, common everywhere, was surprisingly poorly researched and his work soon provided interesting insights into this successful and adaptable little bird. As new opportunities to travel opened up, his interest blossomed to take in the genus Passer as a whole. His travels would ultimately lead to his study of all but one of the group, found only in deepest Turkestan, and to the publication of his authoritative monograph on sparrows in 1988. His wry descriptions of the tribulations and unexpected pleasures of a traveller on four continents, from the Himalayas and Thailand to Africa and the Americas (with a good few islands in between), are interspersed with observations and speculations on the biology of sparrows in a wide variety of habitats. Everywhere local officials and bird watchers warmed to the eccentric Scot in pursuit of the little birds that nobody notices but which so often make their homes beside us. The author's own photographs and delightful cartoons by Euan Dunn further paint the picture of this lifelong search.