Baumgart Stephanie L, Sereno Paul C, Westneat Mark W
Department of Organismal Biology and Anatomy, University of Chicago, 1027 E, 57th St, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
Committee on Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, 1027 E, 57th St, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
Integr Org Biol. 2021 May 17;3(1):obab011. doi: 10.1093/iob/obab011. eCollection 2021.
Wing shape plays a critical role in flight function in birds and other powered fliers and has been shown to be correlated with flight performance, migratory distance, and the biomechanics of generating lift during flight. Avian wing shape and flight mechanics have also been shown to be associated with general foraging behavior and habitat choice. We aim to determine if wing shape in waterbirds, a functionally and ecologically diverse assemblage united by their coastal and aquatic habitats, is correlated with various functional and ecological traits. We applied geometric morphometric approaches to the spread wings of a selection of waterbirds to search for evolutionary patterns between wing shape and foraging behavior, habitat, and migratory patterns. We found strong evidence of convergent evolution of high and low aspect ratio wing shapes in multiple clades. Foraging behavior also consistently exhibits strong evolutionary correlations with wing shape. Habitat, migration, and flight style, in contrast, do not exhibit significant correlation with wing shape in waterbirds. Although wing shape is critical to aerial flight function, its relationship to habitat and periodic locomotor demands such as migration is complex.
翅膀形状在鸟类和其他有动力飞行者的飞行功能中起着关键作用,并且已被证明与飞行性能、迁徙距离以及飞行过程中产生升力的生物力学相关。鸟类的翅膀形状和飞行力学也已被证明与一般觅食行为和栖息地选择有关。我们旨在确定水鸟(一类因其沿海和水生栖息地而在功能和生态上具有多样性的群体)的翅膀形状是否与各种功能和生态特征相关。我们应用几何形态测量方法对一系列水鸟展开的翅膀进行研究,以探寻翅膀形状与觅食行为、栖息地和迁徙模式之间的进化模式。我们发现了多个类群中高、低纵横比翅膀形状趋同进化的有力证据。觅食行为也始终与翅膀形状表现出强烈的进化相关性。相比之下,栖息地、迁徙和飞行方式与水鸟的翅膀形状并无显著相关性。尽管翅膀形状对空中飞行功能至关重要,但其与栖息地以及迁徙等周期性运动需求之间的关系较为复杂。