The pet trade has spurred a wave of bird imports, leading to escapes or even deliberate releases of exotic species into the wild. New research reveals the threat they now pose to native birds.
Social media platforms have enabled wildlife traders to connect as never before. Some operate legally, within the boundaries of international laws. Others are less scrupulous.
Corvids and parrots might be the superstars of the bird world - but other species like gulls, geese and even chicken have shown some impressive skills too.
For the past 50 years, international animal cognition research has focused on how tool use is related to animal intelligence. But new research casts doubt on long-held assumptions.
Kea were able to correctly guess the most probable scenarios, by evaluating various physical and social cues. Previously, only great apes and humans were known to be able to understand probability.
The newly discovered Heracles inexpectatus stood nearly a metre tall. And its fossil bones sat undiscovered on a museum shelf for more than a decade before its hefty status was finally appreciated.
From mistletoebirds, to bush turkeys, to the festively plumaged eclectus parrot, Australian birds can more than hold their own when it comes to embracing the Christmas spirit.
When the Hume Highway was widened, hundreds of nest boxes were installed to replace habitat for three threatened species. Four years of monitoring has concluded the program is entirely unsuccessful.
For more than three decades an egg found in a remote Australian desert was thought to be from a rare nocturnal parrot. So what happened when scientists decided to double-check?