Earliest bird was not a bird? New fossil muddles the Archaeopteryx story
The eleven specimens of Archaeopteryx are some of the most iconic and captivating fossils in existence. The fingers end in claws, the tail is long and bony, and the head – arched back in the throes of death – contains toothed jaws. But the splayed arms are lined with the faint but unmistakeable outlines of…
Can birds become art critics?
Professor Shigeru Watanabe and colleagues at Keio University, Japan, were the joint winners of the 1995 Ig Nobel psychology prize for their success in training pigeons to discriminate between the paintings of Picasso and those of Monet. Now professor Watanabe, presently Project Leader for Keio University’s Centre for Advanced Research on Logic and Sensibility has…
This windowless monolith is a bird nest factory
Swiftlet nests command a high price for the thick texture they give bird’s nest soup. But how does one go about farming birds’ nests? By building imposing concrete towers, of course. “This drab, windowless concrete facade does not conceal an electricity substation, data servers, or a high security detention center,” Nicola Twilley writes over at…