Birds are hosts to many parasites, internal and external. The parasites inevitably form a burden to the host bird and therefore may affect its ability to grow, survive and reproduce as well as its behavior and the abundance and distribution of the whole species. As a consequence, bird-parasite systems have attracted attention from diverse fields. This book draws together a comprehensive range of experts in the field to provide an invaluable reference of current work in bird-parasite interactions. The book addresses the contemporary context of research in bird-parasite systems, and case...

Scientific discoveries about the animal kingdom fuel ideological battles on many fronts, especially battles about sex and gender. We now know that male marmosets help take care of their offspring. Is this heartening news for today's stay-at-home dads? Recent studies show that many female birds once thought to be monogamous actually have chicks that are fathered outside the primary breeding pair. Does this information spell doom for traditional marriages? And bonobo apes take part in female-female sexual encounters. Does this mean that human homosexuality is natural? This highly provocative...

We treat disease as our enemy. Germs and infections are things we battle. But what if we ve been giving them a bum rap?
From the earliest days of life on earth, disease has evolved alongside us. And its presence isn't justnatural but is also essential to our health. Drawing on the latest research, Zuk answers a fascinating range of questions about disease: Why do men die younger than women? Why are we attracted to our mates? Why does the average male bird not have a penis? Why do we--as well as insects, birds, pigs, cows, goats, and even plants--get STDs? Why do we have sex at all, rather...

We evolved to eat berries rather than bagels, to live in mud huts rather than condos, to sprint barefoot rather than play football--or did we? Are our bodies and brains truly at odds with modern life? Although it may seem as though we have barely had time to shed our hunter-gatherer legacy, biologist Marlene Zuk reveals that the story is not so simple. Popular theories about how our ancestors lived--and why we should emulate them--are often based on speculation, not scientific evidence.

Armed with a razor-sharp wit and brilliant, eye-opening research, Zuk takes us to the cutting edge of...

Sexual selection, Darwin's other big idea, is the selection for particular traits and behaviours that results from (usually) female choice and male competition. It can produce flamboyant features, such as the peacock's tail, which would seem to be detrimental to survival. This book explores our understanding of how sexual selection works.