Unlike other marine birds such as cormorants and pelicans, western gulls (Larus occidentalis) don’t have the ability to dive. They considered foraging generalists and have 3 primary foraging methods: picking up prey from the ground or intertidal zone, surface dipping (pictured here), and jump plunging (where gulls will jump off a rock head first to…

The introduction of a ‘replacement’ species to areas that have suffered ecosystem damages due to the extinction of a similar species can greatly improve ecosystem health and species diversity. For instance, introduction of Aldabra giant tortoises (Aldabrachelys gigantea) to an area that had recently lost all large frugivores (animals that eat mostly fruit) that were…

White-tailed tropic bird (phaethon lepturus) chick survival depends more heavily on the frequency in which they are fed rather than the amount in which they are fed. They’re the original supporters of the millenial ‘5 smaller meals per day over 3 larger meals per day’ diet. [Photo by Nick Chudeau and caption by Maggie Creamer]…

Hummingbirds (Trochilidae) rely less on thrusting themselves into the air using their legs than other birds during take-off. Instead they compensate by using their wings earlier on in the take-off process. This phenomena was observed most when hummingbirds took off to either escape something startling or to initiate aggression with another habitat (rather than simply…