Online Research in Biology

What traits can be used to understand evolutionary relationships among organisms? In the investigation Sound Trees, students examine morphological behavioral traits of owls in order to make hypotheses about how they are related. By learning to access the Macaulay Library and interpret graphic representations of sound, they also prepare to do their own independent inquiries. View

What defines a species? And what are the conservation implications of the species definitions we choose? In the investigation Species Concepts in Birds, students examine sound and video recordings of pairs of species to look for evidence of possible hybridization or behavioral reproductive isolation. View

Are the distributions of breeding birds in New York state increasing, or decreasing? To what extent do these changes appear to result from human-caused changes in the habitat? Using data from two Breeding Bird Atlas projects conducted 20 years apart, students investigate Birds in Human Landscapes. This activity uses Google Earth and the New York State Breeding Bird Atlas database. Useful resources are also provided to create your own national or international adaptation of this lesson. View

Why are some bird species so elaborately plumaged? Why do the sexes look alike in some bird species but not others? In the investigation Ornamentation in Birds, students use the Birds of North America Online and the Macaulay Library to learn about the evolutionary forces driving sexual dimorphism. View

investigation: Species Concepts in Birds

Submitted by colleen on 06-25-2010 11:43am EDT
Author(s): 
Emily R. Cramer, Kelly J. Wessell, Colleen M. McLinn
Western Meadowlark
Summary: 

This investigation uses multimedia such as bird songs and their associated visualizations as the raw material to initiate a discussion of traits that can be used to define a species, and the conservation implications of the species definitions we choose. more ...

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news: Presentations from the Innovative Teaching in Ornithology Workshop

Submitted by colleen on 06-24-2010 3:57pm EDT

In August 2009, as this project was getting started, we collaborated with the Student Affairs Committee of the American Ornithologists' Union to hold a pre-conference workshop, "Innovative Teaching in Ornithology." Four faculty from different undergraduate settings gave short presentations, and there was a lively panel discussion involving ample time for questions from the more than 60 attendees.

The presentations, all of which can be downloaded from the AOU Student Affairs Committee website, were: more ...

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application/pdf iconResources for Teaching Ornithology and Related Courses.pdf

investigation: Sound Trees

Submitted by colleen on 06-23-2010 2:27pm EDT
Author(s): 
Sarah R. Stockwell
Snowy Owl
Summary: 

Students learn how spectrograms represent sound variation, and then examine the sounds of owls for traits that might be useful in determining evolutionary relationships. They compare these traits to morphological ones (appearance and plumage), ultimately coming up with their own evolutionary hypotheses to test using multimedia from the Macaulay Library. more ...

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investigation: Ornamentation in Birds

Submitted by colleen on 06-22-2010 3:39pm EDT
Author(s): 
Elise D. Ferree
Northern Cardinal
Summary: 

Students use video specimens from the Macaulay Library to investigate elaborate traits of plumage or behavior that can be found in some bird species due to sexual dimorphism. They develop systems for scoring the extent of variation, and frame hypotheses to investigate using Macaulay Library and the Birds of North America Online. more ...

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