The scientific literature contains hundreds of studies on avian basal metabolic rate (BMR), many of which assumed that BMR was fixed for each species. Yet those from the last few decades have shown avian BMR to be a flexible ...

Southern ground-hornbills Bucorvus leadbeateri are large, terrestrial, carnivorous birds that inhabit the savanna and bushveld habitats of much of Africa, south of the equator. They were once prevalent in north-eastern ...

Abstract available in PDF file.

Herbivore diet selection is influenced by plant quality and availability. For browsing and mixed-feeding herbivores, such as elephants, which consume trees and shrubs, plant quality is influenced by the concentrations of ...

Many mammal species communicate olfactorily via specialised scent glandular secretions, urine and/or dung. Despite a large body of work on olfactory communication, the extent to which mammals communicate via dung odours, ...

Body size and digestive physiology are two factors that influence herbivores foraging behaviour, habitat use and potential to compete with other animals. The aim of this study was to determine how seasonal changes in grass ...

The Lake St Lucia estuarine system, Africa’s largest and oldest protected estuary, also contains the largest Nile Crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) population in a single waterbody in South Africa. We investigated the ...

Despite their popularity, parrots are the world’s most threatened birds. Lovebirds (Agapornis) are very popular pet and aviary birds and as ecologically specialised species in the wild, they are also among the most threatened ...

Abstract available in PDF file.

Urbanization is one of the most damaging and rapidly expanding forms of anthropogenic landscape modification and is having profound consequences on biodiversity worldwide. The global increase in urbanization has resulted ...