Starlings and Mynas

Starlings and Mynas PDF Author: Adrian Craig
Publisher: A&C Black
ISBN: 1408135221
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description
A comprehensive illustrated guide to the Old World family of birds in the Helm Identification series. Starlings range from familiar species such as Common Starling and Common Myna, which are closely associated with people and have been introduced to many parts of the world, to little-known forest birds with a very restricted distribution. The family is centred on tropical Asia and tropical Africa, where two separate evolutionary radiations have occurred. This is the first monograph on the starling family, and summarises the current knowledge of all speices, with a comprehensive bibliography. Information from the avicultural literature is included since for some species nesting and other behaviour have never been observed in the field. Many starlings are highly social, some even nest in colonies, and cooperative breeding ('helpers at the nest') occurs in a number of African species highlights areas where information is lacking, particularly for those starlings whose existence is threatened by habitat destruction.

Starlings and Mynas

Starlings and Mynas PDF Author: Adrian Craig
Publisher: A&C Black
ISBN: 1408135221
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description
A comprehensive illustrated guide to the Old World family of birds in the Helm Identification series. Starlings range from familiar species such as Common Starling and Common Myna, which are closely associated with people and have been introduced to many parts of the world, to little-known forest birds with a very restricted distribution. The family is centred on tropical Asia and tropical Africa, where two separate evolutionary radiations have occurred. This is the first monograph on the starling family, and summarises the current knowledge of all speices, with a comprehensive bibliography. Information from the avicultural literature is included since for some species nesting and other behaviour have never been observed in the field. Many starlings are highly social, some even nest in colonies, and cooperative breeding ('helpers at the nest') occurs in a number of African species highlights areas where information is lacking, particularly for those starlings whose existence is threatened by habitat destruction.

Mozart's Starling

Mozart's Starling PDF Author: Lyanda Lynn Haupt
Publisher: Hachette+ORM
ISBN: 0316370878
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
On May 27th, 1784, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart met a flirtatious little starling in a Viennese shop who sang an improvised version of the theme from his Piano Concerto no. 17 in G major. Sensing a kindred spirit in the plucky young bird, Mozart bought him and took him home to be a family pet. For three years, the starling lived with Mozart, influencing his work and serving as his companion, distraction, consolation, and muse. Two centuries later, starlings are reviled by even the most compassionate conservationists. A nonnative, invasive species, they invade sensitive habitats, outcompete local birds for nest sites and food, and decimate crops. A seasoned birder and naturalist, Lyanda Lynn Haupt is well versed in the difficult and often strained relationships these birds have with other species and the environment. But after rescuing a baby starling of her own, Haupt found herself enchanted by the same intelligence and playful spirit that had so charmed her favorite composer. In Mozart's Starling, Haupt explores the unlikely and remarkable bond between one of history's most cherished composers and one of earth's most common birds. The intertwined stories of Mozart's beloved pet and Haupt's own starling provide an unexpected window into human-animal friendships, music, the secret world of starlings, and the nature of creative inspiration. A blend of natural history, biography, and memoir, Mozart's Starling is a tour de force that awakens a surprising new awareness of our place in the world.

A Storm of Paper Starlings

A Storm of Paper Starlings PDF Author: Inka York
Publisher: Inklore Books
ISBN: 1915708001
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 468

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Book Description
What if the ordinary family you crave finds you? Only they’re not ordinary, neither are you, and neither are the vampire neighbours raising your twin sister. An accident is all it takes to turn my mundane life in a London children’s home upside down. Power and magic lurk at the priory, my new home in the Oxfordshire countryside, and I learn fast that nothing is ordinary around here. Not my newfound family—the Penhaligons. Not my long-lost twin sister. And not the hostile new neighbours—a coven of vampires, vaewolves and demons. As I grapple with family secrets, four powerful new brothers, and latent abilities of my own, my sister and the man who raised her find themselves in mortal danger—a danger that draws me and my family into a battle to save them. Finally embracing the meaning of family, two questions burn at the back of my mind. If vampires and demons exist, what are the Penhaligons? And what am I? A Storm of Paper Starlings is the first of six books. The Not the Same River series follows Violet as she goes from lost, gobby orphan to treasured—okay, she’s still gobby—warrior, finding the clan she would die for along the way. If sibling banter, precious friendships, bitey neighbours, and terrible goats are your jam, settle in to meet your new ride or die crew today. Due to adult language and dark themes, this book is recommended for readers aged 15+ and is ideal for upper YA/crossover readers who enjoy diverse stories. The series should be read in order.

A Murmuration of Starlings

A Murmuration of Starlings PDF Author: Jake Adam York
Publisher: SIU Press
ISBN: 9780809328376
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 100

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Book Description
A Murmuration of Starlings elegizes the martyrs of the civil rights movement, whose names are inscribed on the stone table of the Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama. Individually, Jake Adam York’s poems are elegies for individuals; collectively, they consider the violence of a racist culture and the determination to resist that racism. York follows Sun Ra, a Birmingham jazz musician whose response to racial violence was to secede from planet Earth, considers the testimony in the trial of J. W. Milam and Roy Bryant for the murder of Emmet Till in 1955, and recreates events of Selma, Alabama, in 1965. Throughout the collection, an invasion of starlings imagesthe racial hatred and bloodshed. While the 1950s spawned violence, the movement in the early 1960s transformed the language of brutality and turned the violence against the violent, says York. So, the starlings, first produced by violence, become instruments of resistance. York’s collection responds to and participates inrecent movements to find and punish the perpetrators of the crimes that defined the civil rights movement. A Murmuration of Starlings participates in the search for justice, satisfaction, and closure.

Starlings

Starlings PDF Author: Amanda Linsmeier
Publisher: Ember
ISBN: 059357236X
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 353

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Book Description
In the wake of her father's death, a teen girl discovers a side of her family she didn't know existed, and is pulled into a dark—and ancient—bargain she is next in line to fulfill. A dark YA fantasy debut perfect for fans of House of Hollow and Small Favors. Kit’s father always told her he had no family, but his sudden death revealed the truth. Now Kit has a grandmother she never knew she had—Agatha Starling—and an invitation to visit her father’s hometown, Rosemont. And Rosemont is picture perfect: the famed eternal roses bloom all year, downtown is straight out of the 1950s . . . there’s even a cute guy to show Kit around. The longer Kit’s there, though, the stranger it all feels. The Starling family is revered, but there’s something off about how the Starling women seem to be at the center of the all the town’s important history. And as welcoming as the locals are, Kit can’t shake the feeling that they're hiding something from her. Agatha is so happy to finally meet her only granddaughter, and the town is truly charming, but Kit can’t help wondering, if everything is so great in Rosemont, why did her father leave? And why does it seem like he never wanted her to find it?

Audubon

Audubon PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Birds
Languages : en
Pages : 514

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Book Description


The Auk

The Auk PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Birds
Languages : en
Pages : 762

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Book Description


Neurobiology of human language and its evolution: Primate and Nonprimate Perspectives

Neurobiology of human language and its evolution: Primate and Nonprimate Perspectives PDF Author: Constance Scharff
Publisher: Frontiers E-books
ISBN: 2889191117
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 149

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Book Description
The evolution of human language has been discussed for centuries from different perspectives. Linguistic theory has proposed grammar as a core part of human language that has to be considered in this context. Recent advances in neurosciences have allowed us to take a new neurobiological look on the similarities and dissimilarities of cognitive capacities and their neural basis across both closely and distantly related species. A couple of decades ago the comparisons were mainly drawn between human and non-human primates, investigating the cytoarchitecture of particular brain areas and their structural connectivity. Moreover, comparative studies were conducted with respect to their ability to process grammars of different complexity. So far the available data suggest that non-human primates are able to learn simple probabilistic grammars, but not hierarchically structured complex grammars. The human brain, which easily learns both grammars, differs from the non-human brain (among others) in how two language-relevant brain regions (Broca’s area and superior temporal cortex) are connected structurally. Whether the more dominant dorsal pathway in humans compared to non-human primates is causally related to this behavioral difference is an issue of current debate. Ontogenetic findings suggest at least a correlation between the maturation of the dorsal pathway and the behavior to process syntactically complex structures, although a causal prove is still not available. Thus the neural basis of complex grammar processing in humans remains to be defined. More recently it has been reported that songbirds are also able to distinguish between sound sequences reflecting complex grammar. Interestingly, songbirds learn to sing by imitating adult song in a process not unlike language development in children. Moreover, the neural circuits supporting this behavior in songbirds bear anatomical and functional similarities to those in humans. In adult humans the fiber tract connecting the auditory cortex and motor cortex dorsally is known to be involved in the repetition of spoken language. This pathway is present already at birth and is taken to play a major role during language acquisition. In songbirds, detailed information exist concerning the interaction of auditory, motor and cortical-basal ganglia processing during song learning, and present a rich substrate for comparative studies. The scope of the Research Topic is to bring together contributions of researchers from different fields, who investigate grammar processing in humans, non-human primates and songbirds with the aim to find answers to the question of what constitutes the neurobiological basis of grammar learning. Open questions are: Which brain networks are relevant for grammar learning? Is there more than one dorsal pathway (one from temporal cortex to motor cortex and one to Broca’s area) and if so what are their functions? Has the ability to process sequences of a given hierarchical complexity evolved in different phylogenetic lines (birds, primates, other vocal production learners such as bats)? Is the presence of a sensory-to-motor circuit in humans a precondition for development of a dorsal pathway between the temporal cortex and Broca’s area? What role do subcortical structures (Basal Ganglia) play in vocal and grammar learning?

A Filth of Starlings

A Filth of Starlings PDF Author: PatrickGeorge
Publisher: Patrick George
ISBN: 9780956255815
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 48

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Book Description
Presents visual depictions of bird and aquatic animal group names including a huddle of penguins, a school of whales, and a pod of dolphins.

The Spectator

The Spectator PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 740

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Book Description