Importance to man

In addition to their importance in literature and legend, birds have been significant to human society in myriad ways. Birds and their eggs have been at least incidental sources of food for humans since their origin and still are in most societies. The eggs of some colonial seabirds, such as gulls, terns, and murres, or guillemots, and the young of some muttonbirds are even now harvested in large quantities. With the development of agrarian human cultures, several species of chickens, ducks, geese, and pigeons were taken in early and have been selectively bred into many varieties. These domestic birds are descended, respectively, from the red jungle fowl (Gallus gallus), mallard duck (Anas platyrhynchos), greylag goose (Anser anser), and rock dove (Columba livia). After the discovery of the New World, the turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), which had already been domesticated by the Indians, and the Muscovy duck (Cairina moschata) were brought to Europe and produced several varieties. Guinea fowl (Numida meleagris) from Africa were also widely exported and kept not only for food but also because they are noisy when alarmed, thus warning of the approach of intruders.

Besides being a food source, pigeons have long been bred and trained for carrying messages, their wartime use dating to the Roman era, according to Pliny the Elder. Messenger pigeons were widely used by German, British, and American forces in World Wars I and II and by the United States in the Korean War. In the South Seas, the ability of frigate birds to “home” to their nesting colonies enabled island inhabitants to send messages by these birds.

With the development of modern culture, hunting evolved from a foraging activity to a sport, in which the food value of the game became secondary. Large sums are now spent annually on hunting waterfowl, quail, grouse, pheasants, doves, and other game birds. Sets of rules and conventions have been set up for hunting, and in one elaborate form of hunting, falconry, there is not only a large body of specialized information on keeping and training falcons but also a complex terminology, much of it centuries old.

Feathers have been used for decoration for many thousands of years. Their use in the headpieces of indigenous peoples throughout the world is well known. Feather robes were made by Polynesians and Eskimos; and down quilts, mattresses, and pillows are part of traditional European folk culture. Large feathers have often been used in fans, thereby providing an example of an object put to opposite uses—for cooling as well as for conserving heat. Whereas most feathers used in decorating are now saved as by-products of poultry raising or hunting, until early in the 20th century, egrets, grebes, and other birds were widely shot for their plumes alone. Ostrich farms have been established to produce plumes as well as meat, and some ostriches have been raised specifically for racing. Large quills were once widely used for writing, and feathers have long been used on arrows and fishing lures.

Many birds are kept as pets. Small finches and parrots are especially popular and easy to keep. Of these, the canary (Serinus canaria) and the budgerigar of Australia (Melopsittacus undulatus, often called a parakeet) are widely kept and have been bred for a variety of colour types. On large parks and estates, ornamental species such as peacocks (Pavo cristatus), swans, and various exotic waterfowl and pheasants are often kept. Zoological parks in many cities import birds from many lands and are a source of recreation and enjoyment for millions of people each year.

With the rise of agriculture, man’s relationship with birds became more complex. Vast quantities of guano (bird excrement) were mined from island breeding colonies for use as fertilizer for crops. However, in regions where grain and fruit are grown, depredations by birds may be a serious problem. In North America various species of blackbirds (family Icteridae) are serious pests in grainfields; in Africa a grain-eating finch, the red-billed quelea (Quelea quelea), occurs like locusts, in plague proportions so numerous that alighting flocks may break the branches of trees. The use of city buildings for roosts by large flocks of starlings and blackbirds is also a problem, as is the nesting of albatrosses on airplane runways on Pacific islands. As a result of these problems, conferences on the control of avian pests are commonly held.

Although birds are subject to a great range of diseases and parasites, only a few of these are known to be capable of infecting man. Notable exceptions are ornithosis psittacosis, or parrot fever, a serious and sometimes fatal disease resembling viral pneumonia. The microorganism responsible for the disease is transmitted directly to man from pigeons, parrots, and a variety of other birds via their excrement. Encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain, is also serious, but this infection is transmitted to man and to his domestic animals via biting arthropods, including mosquitoes. West Nile virus can likewise be transmitted. Wild birds may also act as reservoirs for diseases that adversely affect domesticated birds.

The study of birds has contributed much to both the theoretical and practical aspects of biology. Charles Darwin’s studies of the Galapagos finches and other birds during the voyage of HMS Beagle were important in his formulation of the idea of the origin of species through natural selection. Collections of birds in research museums still provide the bases for important studies of geographic variation, speciation, and zoogeography, because birds are one of the best known of animal groups. Early work on the domestic fowl added to the development of both genetics and embryology. The study of animal behaviour (ethology) has been based to a large extent on studies of birds by Konrad Lorenz, Nikolaas Tinbergen, and their successors. Birds also have been the primary group in the study of migration and orientation and the effect of hormones on behaviour and physiology.

Man’s impact on bird populations is very strong. Since 1680 approximately 80 species of birds have become extinct, and a larger number are seriously endangered. While pollution and pesticides are important factors in the decline of certain large species, such as the peregrine falcon, osprey, and California condor, the destruction of natural areas and introduction of exotic animals and diseases have probably been the most devastating. Concerted efforts of research and conservation are required to ensure the survival of rare species.

Natural history

Locomotion

Because of their body structure and their feathered covering, birds are the best fliers among animals, better than insects and bats. There are, however, considerable differences in ability among various birds. Penguins cannot fly, instead spending much of their time in the water swimming with their paddlelike wings. Birds such as ostriches and emus have rudimentary wings but are permanently afoot. At the other extreme, long-winged swifts and frigate birds move from their perches only to fly, never to walk. Most birds alternate some walking or swimming with their flying.

Birds usually fly when they have any considerable distance to travel; there are exceptions, however. The mountain quail of California make their annual migrations up and down the mountains on foot. The guillemots of the Greenland coast migrate southward by swimming; they begin their journey before the young have grown their flight feathers and before some of the adults at least have regrown their recently molted ones. The Adélie penguins may ride northward on drifting ice floes; at the approach of nesting time, they swim back to the Antarctic continent and then walk over the ice to their breeding grounds many miles inland.