Other bird species that have shown an increase in beak size are house sparrows in New Zealand and America, North American dark-eyed juncos, and Galapagos finches. "Gang-gang cockatoos and red-rumped parrots, which are both found throughout parts of Australia … have increased their beak size by around 4 to 10 per cent since the late 1800s," Ms Ryding said. They found "extensive evidence" of this shape-shifting in some bird species in Australia, including the red-rumped parrot and the gang-gang cockatoo. "Specifically, we've been looking at whether animals are increasing … the surface area of these appendages as a way to deal with the increased temperatures," review co-author Sara Ryding from Deakin University told the ABC's AM program. They examined data on average temperatures and short-term temperature extremes, as well as data on appendage size. The researchers wanted to see whether animals might be responding to climate change and the associated temperature increases by changing the shape of their bodies. In warmer environments, their legs, ears, tails and beaks tend to be larger, to increase the area that heat can be lost from. In cooler climates, warm-blooded animals tend to have smaller legs, ears, tails and beaks to minimise heat loss. "Changes in the ecology and life history of animals due to global environmental change are no longer a theoretical concept, but a reality." Cockatoos and parrots show 'striking' change "This proportional increase in relative appendage size, and therefore subsequent change in body proportions, can be referred to as 'shape-shifting', and is an under-appreciated response to climatic warming," the review, published in the journal Trends in Ecology and Evolution, states. These body parts have had to increase in size in some animals, so they can lower their internal temperatures, as the Earth's climate has warmed. This shape-shifting has seen an increase in the size of appendages - such as beaks, legs and ears - that play an important role in regulating body heat for animals. No, we're not luring you into an episode of Animorphs - rather, a review of published scientific data from around the world has found that, to cope with rising temperatures, many animals and birds are "shape-shifting" to cool down.
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