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Do migrant birds have more pointed wings?: A comparative study

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Summary

Do birds that migrate over longer distances have more pointed wings than more sedentary birds? Within several bird genera, species differ considerably in their migration distances. This makes it possible to study the extent to which different taxa show similar morphological solutions to common selection pressures. I selected 14 species, two from each of seven passerine genera, to maximize within-genus differences in migration distance. Wing lengths and the lengths of eight primary feathers around the wing tip were measured to assess wing length and shape. Primary lengths were transformed to take into account the allometric relationship between the length of each feather and wing length and then collapsed into summary measures of shape by principal component analysis. I used the method of independent contrasts to address the effects of phylogeny. Wing length showed no relationship with migration distance. There was a correlation between migration distance and wing shape. It is concluded that long-distance migration has resulted in convergent morphological evolution of long distal and short proximal primaries, resulting in wing tips close to the leading edge of the wing.

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  1. Department of Zoology, University of Oulu, POB 333, FIN-90571, Oulu, Finland

    Mikko Mönkkönen

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  1. Mikko Mönkkönen
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Mönkkönen, M. Do migrant birds have more pointed wings?: A comparative study. Evol Ecol 9, 520–528 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01237833

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