With the Second Edition of his acclaimed text, Frank Gill offers the most comprehensive, up-to-date look at ornithology available. Not just a catalogue of species, it takes a conceptual, research-based approach to communicating an understanding of birds, providing an interpretive context that gives focus and meaning to the details of avian life. You get the latest on the impact of evolution on birds, especially the integration of morphological, behavioral, and physiological adaptations; contemporary research on communication and learning, social behavior, mating and reproduction, and population and community ecology; and contributions of avian biology to such fields as ecology, sociobiology, population biology, and biogeography.