Researchers quantified the drivers of public interest in more than 600 bird species in the United States by comparing summaries of online searches for each species to the species' abundance and spatial distribution; the authors found, for example, that popularity tended to increase with bird body size, that endangered species attracted high local interest, and that certain well-known species were popular everywhere, even where they do not occur.
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Article #18-20670: "Characterizing the cultural niches of North American birds," by Justin G. Schuetz and Alison Johnston.
MEDIA CONTACT: Alison Johnston, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; tel: +44-1223-331381, +44-7765-227383; e-mail: < aj327@cornell.edu >
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences