10.5061/DRYAD.Z8W9GHXD3
Hernandez-Tellez, Irene
0000-0003-4496-0815
Complutense University of Madrid
Feather traits, wing morphology and abundance of southern populations of
Sylvia atricapilla related to altitudinal movements
Dryad
dataset
2021
2021-10-04T00:00:00Z
2021-10-04T00:00:00Z
en
115200 bytes
3
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Moult of birds is shaped by environmental and genetic drivers whose
relative contribution to the structure of feathers may differ within and
between populations. In this study we compare some traits of tail feathers
(growth bars, mass, rachis width and barb length) between four populations
of the Eurasian blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) breeding at different
elevations within the southwestern Palaearctic. We tested if these traits
were related to the primary productivity of habitats (a surrogate of food
availability) or were better explained as an adaptation to altitudinal
movements. The distribution of primary productivity was positively related
to blackcap abundance suggesting that the species tracked the most
productive areas to breed. In this environmental setting, wing morphology
(wing length, concavity and pointedness) suggested that lowland blackcaps
were sedentary while blackcaps from highland areas were involved in
altitudinal movements. The feathers of blackcaps inhabiting the highlands
showed wider growth bars and rachis than those of the most productive
lowland areas, but did not differ in feather mass and barb length. Fast
feather growth has been related to time constraints to moult and wider
rachis to improve flight efficiency in migratory birds. Our results
therefore suggest that differences in feather characteristics between
southern populations of the Eurasian blackcap are better interpreted as an
adaptive response to altitudinal migration than as a consequence of
regional food availability.
The dataset was collected during a study in the Iberian Peninsula and the
Maghreb, covering different elevation ranges. It was processed through a
series of generalised linear models to produce a MS accepted for
publication in the Journal of Avian Biology.
The readme file contains an explanation of each of the variables in the
dataset. Two files are attached, one with the feather measurements and one
with the bird counts. There are no missing values in the database.
Information on how the measurements were made can be found in the
associated manuscript mentioned above. For any further information please
contact the author at ihtellez@ucm.es.