REYNOLDS Flashcards
Define taxonomy
classification of organisms
Define evolution
the process of development of living organisms from earlier forms
Define phylogenesis
the evolutionary development and diversification of a focal taxon
Define physiology
the normal functions of organisms and their constituent parts
Define ecology
the relationship between an organism and others, and with the environment
Define population dynamics
the drivers that cause some populations to increase and others to decrease
Define conservation
how we prioritise conservation efforts when so many species need protection and resources are finite
What is the class Aves
- 300 billion birds
- 40 orders
- 245 families
- 2,313 genera
- all avian orders completed by term formes e.g. falconiformes
Describe the diversity of eggs
variation between eggs of species in terms of
- number laid in clutch
- base colour
- size
- speckles and spots
- large infraspecific differences exist
What parts of the anatomy and physiology are highly conserved
- skeletal elements fused
- long bones air-filled
- medullary bone
- no teeth but gizzard grinds food instead
- large flight muscles
- air sacs as well as lungs
- most of body weight near centre of gravity
- feathers
- calcified eggshells
How has flight driven body mass reduction
- lost teeth
- lost structural bone
- lost skeletal elements
- not viviparous but lay eggs
- only one functional ovary at any one time
- massive diurnal fluctuation in fat reserves
What are the important skeletal elements
- furculum
- keel
- tarsometatarsus
- tibiotarsus
- synsachrum
- pygostyle
What are the important digestive elements
- crop
- proventriculus
- gizzard
- caecum
- cloaca
- vent
What are the important respiratory elements
- lung
- subscapular airsac
- cervical airsacs
- anterior thoracic airsac
- abdominal airsacs
- posterior thoracic airsac
How do birds forage
- specialised bills
- specialised feet (generally for locomotion however some are for feeding)
- specialised digestive machinery - across avian order there are varying degrees of specialisation of gut components
- specialised behaviour
Describe the structure of the stomach
- split into 2 separate structures
1. glandular proventriculus - secretes pepsin, HCl and mucus when food arrives from oesophagus
2. a muscular gizzard - avian answer to teeth, food is ground in gizzard as birds do not have teeth
Gizzard is well-developed in birds that eat hard items and poorly in those eating soft
Describe the structure of the caecum
- voluminous to absent depending on species
- developed in herbivores and omnivores
What are some specialised behaviours
- skimming: detects prey though touch, upper mandibles snaps shut when fish detected
- ambush: used by birds of prey
- pursuit: pressure fish under water, serrated edges of bills allow slippery fish to be caught
- plunge diving: foraging technique for Pelecaniformes
- hooding or canopy feeding: foraging technique for Ciconiiformes
- ossuary: flat rock used to fragment bones
- larders: acorn woodpeckers
- tool use: song thrushes use anvils
- milk bottle tops: learned to peck open foil milk bottle tops to feed on cream
- hunting in packs: pelicans fish cooperatively, drive fish to the shallows
What are the effects of limited Ca intake of birds
- late laying
- incubation of empty nests
- reduced clutch size
- clutch desertion
- reduced hatching success
- reduced brood size
Calcium comes from
- nail shell
- chicken eggshell
- mortar
- vertebrate bones
- soil
What are the 3 types of reproductive strategies
- Social - 2 birds defend a breeding territory and/or provide parental care
- Sexual - 2 birds pair to copulate
- Cooperative - 2+ birds care for single brood of offspring
Describe some examples of reproductive strategies
Copulation - allows sperm to fertilise eggs, lasts 1-2 seconds
Courtship feeding - male feeds female and demonstrates foraging ability, shows he can provide for chicks, feeding initiates mating when female has ovulated and is receptive
Lekking behaviour - promiscuous males competing for matings, females visit lek for fertilisation with best male
Sperm competition - sperm stored by female in sperm storage tubules, released after ovulation; after successive inseminators, no mixing of sperm but sperm functions on a last in first out principle
Egg formation - sperm fertilises ovum in the infundibulum, ovum passes down tract receiving layers of albumen (plumping), plumped eggs calcified in uterus or shell gland, eggs laid once every 24 hours
Breeding cycle -
Recruitment -> egg laying -> incubation -> chick rearing -> fledging
What are the social mating systems
Monogamy: 1 male and 1 female (85% of all species)
Social polygyny: 1 male and many females ( 10% of all species)
Social polyandry: 1 female and many males (occurs in 11 families)
What are the sexual mating systems
Extra-pair paternity (EPP) can arise from
Extra-pair copulation (EPC): females mate with 1+ males other than social mate
Intraspecific brood parasitism (IBP): conspecific female lays eggs in another pair’s nest AKA egg dumping
Rapid mate-switching: pair-female lays eggs fertilised by previous social mate
Cooperative mating systems
Occurs in 3% of species
Large family group, usually closely related members but only 1 breeding pairs
