Birds in a Changing World: Current Challenges and the Future of Research
A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Wildlife".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 July 2026 | Viewed by 22
Special Issue Editor
Interests: interaction between molt vs. breeding of owls; avian incubation behaviour; nest light environment; relationship between nest concealment vs. predators risk; morphometry of the owl and the raptors feathers; anthropogenic materials in bird nests
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Birds occupy diverse ecological niches and are a key component of both terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Their distribution, phenology and population dynamics are increasingly affected by global climate change and anthropogenic pressure. Despite growing environmental stress, many bird species exhibit considerable behavioural, physiological and anatomical plasticity. The most commonly observed adaptive responses include changes in migratory routes, earlier onset of breeding, modifications in diet composition and even changes in wing and feather length. Comparative studies indicate that generalist species cope better with environmental variability than highly specialized ones.
Research on bird ecology in the context of global change requires an interdisciplinary approach that integrates broadly understood avian biology, field ecology, climatology, genetics, anatomy, histology and data analysis. Birds also remain important indicator species, allowing the assessment of ecosystem degradation or recovery.
This Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive overview of current knowledge on avian responses to environmental change, combining the latest research findings with emerging directions in monitoring and environmental conservation.
We encourage the submission of high-quality original articles addressing all aspects of bird biology and ecology, including habitat requirements and selection, foraging ecology and dietary preferences, reproductive biology and breeding success, distribution, breeding movements and migration, internal and external parasites, genetics, anatomy, histology and physiology, threats and conservation actions as well as population status and trends.
Dr. Zbigniew Kwieciński
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- life history
- bird biology and ecology
- genetics
- anatomy
- histology
- physiology
- conservation
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