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Animals/Science

moutuakillamoutuakilla
in Not Sports Related
I am currently working on a research project, which is a collaboration between the Natural History Museum and Sheffield University, looking at evolution in birds. We are looking at every species on the planet and investigating what has caused the creation of new species, evolution of new traits, and potential causes for extinctions.

One of the aims of the project is to make scientific data more readily available, so all of the data will be open source, allowing any research group that is interested to carry out their own studies on the data set. The work basically involves collecting data on bird morphology (body measurements) using a variety of techniques including 3D scanning, and bird plumage using UV photography.

A personal aim is to get more people interested in scientific research, and to disseminate our work so that it is more interesting and accessible to a wider variety of people. To this end I have started writing a blog about different bird species, with the aim of keeping it basic, but allowing people to find out more by providing further links if they wish to delve deeper into the research.

Bit random for a football forum, but the season is over, and I thought some of you might be interested in learning a bit more about the birds of this world. Anyway, there should be at least one post a week, which should be a little bit interesting and informative. Always welcome feedback if you like it or otherwise. I have only started doing it this week, so there is not too much material on there yet.

If anyone is interested, here is the link:

http://macroevolution.group.shef.ac.uk/blog/

If no I’ll just quietly sink to the bottom of the page :)
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Comments

  • Off_itOff_it
    Good luck mate, but I'd be surprised if many on here knew the first thing about birds.

    Trains on the other hand, all over it.
  • SuedeAdidasSuedeAdidas
    Titfield Thunderbolt?
  • Brendan_O_ConnellBrendan_O_Connell
    Off_it said:

    Good luck mate, but I'd be surprised if many on here knew the first thing about birds.

    Trains on the other hand, all over it.

    I know how to piss birds off (judging by another thread today!!)
  • ChizzChizz
    Can I be the first to suggest you should tweet this?
  • moutuakillamoutuakilla
    https://twitter.com/MacrobirdEvol All over it, but thanks for the feedback :)
  • AddickUpNorthAddickUpNorth
    Interesting read. Birds aren't my forte but I'm always up for expanding my knowledge of who and what we share this planet with.
  • BusterblitzBusterblitz
    Sounds like a great gig that, though every species sounds like quite an ask! Did we speak a while back on here on something bird/Ecuador related?

    Those beak scans on the twitter page are pretty amazing.
  • Dave2lDave2l
    There's a good documentary about Russel Wallace.

    That is mostly to do with birds of paradise.

    Bill bailey goes Borneo and gives recognition Wallace deserves that should/could be in equal measure with Darwin.
  • jonseventyfivejonseventyfive
    As I no longer work, my garden has taken on new meaning, always grown a lot of stuff, living in rural area means we get plenty of visits from all sorts of critters, every year blue tits move into the same extractor cover meaning we leave that fan well alone until they go, lots feeding going on now so not much longer until we can use that room fully again.
  • seth plumseth plum
    I once saw a hen harrier in Scotland which I thought was pretty cool.
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  • jonseventyfivejonseventyfive
    Hen harrier takes some beating, locally we have a growing population of red kites, not sure how rare they are but are a good size when adult.
  • moutuakillamoutuakilla
    Busterblitz said:

    Sounds like a great gig that, though every species sounds like quite an ask! Did we speak a while back on here on something bird/Ecuador related?

    Those beak scans on the twitter page are pretty amazing.

    We've managed about 30% of the worlds species so far, should be done by next september. Don't recall a chat about Ecuador, although I would love to go there!
  • nth_london_addicknth_london_addick
    Drive up the m40 red kites everywhere between London and Oxford,

    Lots of owls in letchworth and Stevenage
  • LeuthLeuth
    This is totally up my street, cheers
  • nth_london_addicknth_london_addick
    We took part In the rspb survey this year was a great way to spend an afternoon with the kids
  • brogibbrogib
    We've got a Kingfisher on our pond and sometimes a pair of Great Black Woodpecker (Ones with the red heads) in the garden an all.

    Also, anyone ever seen a black and white Blackbird? Coz there's one in our woods and it ain't a magpie or pied wagtail, 100% Blackbird with white bits on it.
  • moutuakillamoutuakilla
    brogib said:

    We've got a Kingfisher on our pond and sometimes a pair of Great Black Woodpecker (Ones with the red heads) in the garden an all.

    Also, anyone ever seen a black and white Blackbird? Coz there's one in our woods and it ain't a magpie or pied wagtail, 100% Blackbird with white bits on it.

    Could have partial albinism
  • brogibbrogib
    Yeah, I reckon that's what it is as it looks like one of those in the photos


    This is the Kingfisher on the pond, he's got a little fish in one of the photo

    image

    image
  • JohnBoyUKJohnBoyUK
    Nice blog.

    I've spent the last 14 years working in three different Research Administration offices in the Uni of London - KCL, Birkbeck and now QMUL. Have seen first hand how passionate academics are with their research!
  • cabblescabbles
    @moutuakilla not exactly bird related but I really enjoyed this ted talk on the evolution of and descendant from the dinosaur that could be established looking at the common chicken. Fascinating to compare the wing of the chicken with the leg of the dinosaur

    http://www.ted.com/talks/jack_horner_building_a_dinosaur_from_a_chicken
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  • StigStig
    Loved that hoatzin video. It looks like it wouldn't be out of place at a Red Bull Flugtag.
  • moutuakillamoutuakilla
    cabbles said:

    @moutuakilla not exactly bird related but I really enjoyed this ted talk on the evolution of and descendant from the dinosaur that could be established looking at the common chicken. Fascinating to compare the wing of the chicken with the leg of the dinosaur

    http://www.ted.com/talks/jack_horner_building_a_dinosaur_from_a_chicken

    Sounds really interesting, I will check it out when I get back from holiday on Monday. Thanks!
  • moutuakillamoutuakilla
    The Pileated Woodpecker is next up! Will be a few more coming this week too.

    Here is a pciture of of latest phylogeny showing how much we have done. Over 30% now!
    image
  • Red_in_SE8Red_in_SE8
    moutuakilla said:

    I am currently working on a research project, which is a collaboration between the Natural History Museum and Sheffield University, looking at evolution in birds. We are looking at every species on the planet and investigating what has caused the creation of new species, evolution of new traits, and potential causes for extinctions.


    http://macroevolution.group.shef.ac.uk/blog/

    If no I’ll just quietly sink to the bottom of the page :)

    I am very surprised to see you use the term 'creation of new species' in this context given your obvious scientific background. It is wrong and faciltates religious nutters/apologists to persist with their anti-evolution arguments. Species are not created. Birds, like all animals have been evolving over millions of years and new species are simply the result of man deciding to classify and name a specific group of animals who appear to be the result of a particular evolutionary path.
  • PL54PL54
    I dropped my littlest at Nursery this morning and they had 2 just-fledged Wrens (pretty sure) in a box as they were found in the garden / playground when the staff turned up.

    They couldn't stay there so I put them in the hedge at the end of my garden - good luck to them. Cats don't go anywhere near my garden anymore.
  • brogibbrogib
    PL54 said:

    I dropped my littlest at Nursery this morning and they had 2 just-fledged Wrens (pretty sure) in a box as they were found in the garden / playground when the staff turned up.

    They couldn't stay there so I put them in the hedge at the end of my garden - good luck to them. Cats don't go anywhere near my garden anymore.

    Wrens, my favourite song bird
  • moutuakillamoutuakilla
    brogib said:

    PL54 said:

    I dropped my littlest at Nursery this morning and they had 2 just-fledged Wrens (pretty sure) in a box as they were found in the garden / playground when the staff turned up.

    They couldn't stay there so I put them in the hedge at the end of my garden - good luck to them. Cats don't go anywhere near my garden anymore.

    Wrens, my favourite song bird
    Didn't realise they were the most populous species in the UK until recently
  • Red_in_SE8Red_in_SE8
    moutuakilla said:

    Red_in_SE8 said:

    moutuakilla said:

    I am currently working on a research project, which is a collaboration between the Natural History Museum and Sheffield University, looking at evolution in birds. We are looking at every species on the planet and investigating what has caused the creation of new species, evolution of new traits, and potential causes for extinctions.


    http://macroevolution.group.shef.ac.uk/blog/

    If no I’ll just quietly sink to the bottom of the page :)

    I am very surprised to see you use the term 'creation of new species' in this context given your obvious scientific background. It is wrong and faciltates religious nutters/apologists to persist with their anti-evolution arguments. Species are not created. Birds, like all animals have been evolving over millions of years and new species are simply the result of man deciding to classify and name a specific group of animals who appear to be the result of a particular evolutionary path.
    I see you have just decided to hone in on my use of laymans terms, instead of reading the articles or what the project is about. The project is clearly based on evolution and has nothing to do with creationism. I really don't think me posting some fun articles about birds facilitates religious nutters...
    I know it is not about creationism without having to read the articles. But just because you are using layman terms does not mean you can be so inaccurate. Clearly species are not created. They only exist as a result of man's classification systems. It just grates with me. But I don't want to hijack what could be an interesting thread over the next few months. So, I am not going get into an argument about it.
  • StigStig
    Interesting article (I'm enjoying this fledgling series mouatakilla. I don't understand the scanning picture though (although it looks very pretty). What does that mean? And for cuteness, that chick video is fantastic.
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