The Behavior of Texas Birds

Front Cover
University of Texas Press, Jan 1, 2010 - Nature - 443 pages

Whether it's the sudden, plunging dives of Brown Pelicans, the singing and aerial displays of Northern Mockingbirds, or the communal nesting of Purple Martins, innate and learned behaviors are some of the most fascinating things to observe in Texas birds. Even casual birdwatchers eventually ask, "why do they do that?" while serious birders and ornithologists seek to understand all the behaviors involved in feeding, flying, mating, and rearing young. But until now, it has been hard to find this information in one handy source.

In this comprehensive, yet easy-to-use book, Kent Rylander distills data from many sources to provide an authoritative guide to the behavior of Texas birds. He begins by explaining the principles of animal behavior and illustrating how they can be applied to interpreting bird behaviors in the field. The majority of the book is devoted to accounts of more than 400 species of birds that are most likely to be encountered by Texas birdwatchers. Each account describes such behaviors as feeding, courtship, parenting, and other behaviors that are significant for that species. References to interesting and important articles from scientific journals are incorporated in the species accounts where appropriate, and line drawings illustrate some of the behaviors described.

 

Contents

V
19
VI
20
VII
24
VIII
25
IX
34
X
55
XI
87
XII
114
XVI
182
XVII
183
XVIII
187
XIX
203
XX
212
XXI
215
XXII
226
XXIII
377

XIII
125
XIV
134
XV
172

Other editions - View all

Common terms and phrases

About the author (2010)

Kent Rylander is Professor of Biological Sciences at Texas Tech University in Lubbock.

Bibliographic information