Meeting Abstract
Primary and secondary flight feathers are the principal morphological elements which determine wing shape in flying birds. Variation in wing shape has been shown to impact measures of flight performance such as flight speed and maneuverability in passerines. The hooded warbler (Setophaga citrina) is a neotropical migrant which exhibits sex-specific differences in spring arrival dates to the breeding grounds and in habitat preference. In order to determine whether differences in ecology are explained by variation in morphology and flight performance, we measured wing loading and wing shape and assessed flight performance in two wild populations of hooded warblers breeding in southeastern Ohio and measured wing shape in additional specimens from northern and southern breeding populations. Each individual holding territory within our study sites was uniquely color banded and followed throughout the 2014/15 breeding seasons to obtain individual reproductive success. We did not detect differences in wing morphology between hatch year (HY) males and females, but after hatch year (AHY) males exhibited a narrow and pointed wing morphology; a morphology linked to rapid flight speeds and is common in long distance migrants. AHY females exhibited a broader, more rounded wing morphology than males; possibly allowing for greater maneuverability in the dense understory where the females nest and forage. Studies linking variation in morphology to variation in performance and, subsequently, linking performance to reproductive success will improve our understanding of the adaptive nature of various wing morphologies as well as provide insight into how hooded warblers, and perhaps other migratory species, may respond to novel selective pressures encountered in a changing environment.
