Testing Morphology-Dominance-Performance Framework in Bird Flight

在过去的60年里，由于气候变化的影响，全球鸟类的体重一直在下降。然而，这种慢性体重下降对飞行性能的影响尚未得到探讨。体重是一种可塑性特征，它会在每一天、每一个季节以及每一只鸟的整个生命阶段发生变化。身体质量也对飞行所需的能量有直接影响。在控制时间质量波动的同时，将飞行形态与性能联系起来的模型将有助于可靠地预测在不断变化的环境中随着形态的重塑而发生的性能变化。拟议的项目利用最先进的运动跟踪摄像机和圈养的斑马雀（Taeniopygia castanotis）在牛津飞行组和大山雀（Parus major）种群在威瑟姆森林由爱德华·格雷野外鸟类学研究所监测。在测试野生动物种群之前，我打算制作三维性能空间图，说明已知形态如何影响理论飞行性能。这将涉及在每种飞行模式（如起飞、觅食和求偶展示飞行）的选择中确定可衡量的性能目标。理论预测将与斑马雀和大山雀的真实飞行表现进行比较，以了解时间体重波动如何影响飞行。我将在圈养斑胸草雀的发展过程中跟踪飞行性能的变化。我还将测量野生大山雀种群的表现目标，因为它们的体重下降是引入雀鹰模型作为捕食者压力的影响。除了形态和表现之间的直接比例，个性和社会地位经常与行为相互作用，因此飞行。例如，在大山雀中，速度快的雄性探险者比速度慢的雄性探险者占据了更多的中心和主导的社会地位，但在繁殖成功方面没有明显的好处。占主导地位的雄性通常也比从属的雌性更重、更快。我将使用社会网络分析和飞行室来测试性格如何与表现相关，以及在大山雀和沼泽山雀种群中，通过控制食物获取来改变体重是否会影响种间优势。总的来说，我的目标是理清形态、社会因素和表现之间的适应性相互作用。

Bird body mass has been decreasing globally over the past 60 years due to the effects of climate change. However, the impact of such chronic body mass decline on flight performance has not been explored. Body mass is a plastic trait that changes diurnally, seasonally, and throughout the life stages of an individual bird. Body mass also has a direct impact on power requirements for flight. A model that links flight morphology to performance while controlling for temporal mass fluctuations will be useful in reliably predicting the performance shifts as morphology reshapes in a changing environment.The proposed project utilizes state-of-art motion-tracking cameras and captive Zebra Finches (Taeniopygia castanotis) at the Oxford Flight Group and Great Tit (Parus major) population in Wytham Woods monitored by Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology. Before testing the wildlife population, I intend to produce three-dimensional performance space graphs on how known morphology may affect theoretical flight performance. This will involve identifying measurable performance objectives in selection per each flight mode such as take-off, foraging, and courtship display flight. The theoretical predictions will be compared with the real-life flight performance of Zebra Finches and Great Tit on how temporal body mass fluctuations may affect flight. I will track changing flight performance throughout the development of captive Zebra Finches. I will also measure performance objectives on the wild Great Tit population as their body mass depresses as an effect of introducing a sparrowhawk model as the predator pressure.Beyond direct scaling between morphology and performance, personality and social rank often interact with behaviour and therefore flight. For example, in Great Tit, fast explorer males occupy more central and dominant social positions than slower equivalents with no apparent benefits in breeding success. Dominant males are also often heavier and faster than subordinate females. I will use social network analysis and flight chamber to test how personality correlates with performance and whether body mass change by controlling food access among Great Tit and Marsh Tit populations may influence interspecific dominance. Overall, I aim to disentangle the adaptative interplay between morphology, social factors, and performance.