Table of Contents

Foreword by James D. Gilardi Preface and Acknowledgments PART I: The World of Parrots: Introducing the Psittaciformes 1. What Are the Parrots and Where Did They Come From? The Evolutionary History of the Parrots PART II: The Functional Parrot: Physiology, Morphology, and Behavior 2. The Thriving Parrot: The Foods and Beaks of Parrots 3. The Sensible Parrot: How Parrots Perceive and Use Information 4. The Thinking Parrot: The Brains of Parrots and How They Use Them PART III: The Lives of Parrots: Mating, Life History, and Populations 5. Sex and Marriage: The Mating Systems of Parrots 6. From the Cradle to the Grave: The Life History of Parrots 7. Populations of Parrots: Conservation and Invasion Biology Epilogue: Themes and Threads Uniting the Chapters of This Book Notes Bibliography Index

About the Author

Catherine A. Toft was Professor Emerita in the Department of Evolution and Ecology at the University of California, Davis at the time of her death in December 2011. She was coeditor of Parasite-Host Associations: Coexistence or Conflict? Timothy F. Wright is Associate Professor in the Department of Biology at New Mexico State University. He has studied parrots in the wild and in the laboratory for more than twenty years.

Reviews

"A rich celebration and study of 'the most human of birds.'" Library Journal