Fifty years of bird song research: a case study in animal behaviour

The growth of bird song research over the past half century has been catalysed by both technical and theoretical advances. The study of mechanisms has largely moved to the neurobiological level, where work on bird song has blossomed. At the behavioural level, development and function have been the prime foci of attention, and I briefly review the advances in these two areas. But, looking forwards, the well is far from dry: I suggest a few topics on which I expect that papers will appear in the journal in the next few decades. (C) 2003 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd on behalf of The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.