Oxidative state is associated with migration distance, but not traits linked to flight energetics
Data files
Sep 12, 2024 version files 22.08 KB
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dryadJAB2024_table1.csv
6.25 KB
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dryadJAB2024_table2.csv
13.07 KB
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README.md
2.77 KB
Abstract
Flight can be highly energy demanding, but its efficiency depends largely on flight style, wing shape and loading, and a range of morphological and lifestyle adaptations that can modify the cost of sustained flight. Such behavioural and morphological adaptations can also influence the physiological costs associated with migration. For instance, during intense flight and catabolism of reserves, lipid damage induced by pro-oxidants increases, and to keep oxidative physiological homeostasis under control, the antioxidant machinery can be upregulated. Studies on the oxidative physiology of endurance flight have produced contradictory results, making generalization difficult, especially because multispecies studies are missing. Therefore, to explore the oxidative cost of flight and migration, we used samples collected during the breeding season from 113 European bird species and explored the associations of measures of antioxidant capacity (total antioxidant status, uric acid and glutathione concentration) and oxidative damage of lipids (malondialdehyde) with variables reflecting flight energetics (year-round or specifically during migration) using a phylogenetic framework. We found that none of the traits predicting year-round flight energy expenditure (flight style, wing morphology and flight muscle morphology) explained any measures of oxidative state. Our results suggest that birds endure their everyday flight exercise without or low oxidative cost. However, oxidative damage to lipids and one component of the endogenous antioxidant system (uric acid), measured after the end of spring migration on breeding adult birds, increased with migration distance. Our results suggest that migration could have oxidative consequences that might be carried over to subsequent life-history stages (breeding).
README: Oxidative state is associated with migration distance, but not traits linked to flight energetics
https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.6djh9w19s
Description of the data and file structure
The dataset contains species-specific average physiology measures (TAS, UA, tGSH, MDA) provided as best linear unbiased estimates (BLUEs), sample sizes for each measured physiological parameters, body mass, flight type (CF – continuous flapping, FS-FG – flapping and soaring combined with and flapping and gliding, PT – passerine type), wing morphology (wing area, wing aspect ratio), migration distance, diet, pectoralis major to supracoracoid muscle ratio, fat load, clutch size and number of broods per year. Note that cells with NA represent missing values. Physiological measures were collected from 113 European wild adult birds captured at various sites across Romania during the breeding season between 2011 and 2013, and between 2016 and 2019. The sources of all morphological, behavioural, ecological and life history traits from Table 2 are provided in the Methods and in case of the body mass in a separate column.
Files and variables
File: dryadJAB2024_table1.csv
Column names
TAS: BLUE scores for total antioxidant status
n_TAS: sample size for total antioxidant status
UA: BLUE scores for uric acid
n_UA: sample size for uric acid
tGSH: BLUE scores for total glutathione
n_tGSH: sample size for total glutathione
MDA: BLUE scores for malondialdehide
n_MDA: sample size for malondialdehide
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File: dryadJAB2024_table2.csv
Column names
Body mass (g): species specific mean body mass in g
Body mass_source: bibliographic source of species specific body mass
Flight_style: flight style classification of species (CF – continuous flapping, FS-FG – flapping and soaring combined with flapping and gliding, PT – passerine type)
Wing_area (cm^2): mean wing area without body between the wings in cm^2
Wing_aspect_ratio: mean aspect ratio without body between the wings
Wing_loading (Nm^-2): mean wing loading without body between the wings in Nm^-2
n_wing_parameters: sample size for wing area, aspect ratio and wing loading
Migration_distance (km): migration distance in km calculated as the geographic distance between the centroids of breeding and wintering ranges of species
Diet: diet classification of species (animal - mostly animal-based, plant - mostly plant-based, mixed - quasi equal consumption of animal- and plant-derived food)
Pectoralis_major/supracoracoid_muscle mass: pectoral-to-supracoracoid muscle mass ratio
Fat_load: accumulated fuel load of migrating birds
Clutch_size: mean clutch size
No_brood_per_year: mean number of brood per year
Methods
The blood samples for physiological measures were collected from wild birds captured during the breeding season. For all physiological traits species-specific average physiology measures as best linear unbiased estimates (BLUEs) are provided. All other parameters used in the analyses were extracted from published articles as stated in the Methods.