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Full-Text Articles in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Mitochondrial Metabolism In Blood More Reliably Predicts Whole-Animal Energy Needs Compared To Other Tissues, Stefania Casagrande, Maciej Dzialo, Lisa Trost, Kasja Malkoc, Edyta T. Sadowska, Michaela Hau, Barbara J. Pierce, Scott R. Mcwilliams, Ulf Bauchinger Dec 2023

Mitochondrial Metabolism In Blood More Reliably Predicts Whole-Animal Energy Needs Compared To Other Tissues, Stefania Casagrande, Maciej Dzialo, Lisa Trost, Kasja Malkoc, Edyta T. Sadowska, Michaela Hau, Barbara J. Pierce, Scott R. Mcwilliams, Ulf Bauchinger

Biology Faculty Publications

Understanding energy metabolism in free-ranging animals is crucial for ecological studies. In birds, red blood cells (RBCs) offer a minimally invasive method to estimate metabolic rate (MR). In this study with European starlings Sturnus vulgaris, we examined how RBC oxygen consumption relates to oxygen use in key tissues (brain, liver, heart, and pectoral muscle) and versus the whole-organism measured at basal levels. The pectoral muscle accounted for 34-42% of organismal MR, while the heart and liver, despite their high mass-specific metabolic rate, each contributed 2.5-3.0% to organismal MR. Despite its low contribution to organismal MR (0.03-0.04%), RBC MR best predicted …


How Birds During Migration Maintain (Oxidative) Balance, Scott R. Mcwilliams, Wales A. Carter, Clara Cooper-Mullin, Kristen J. Demoranville, Abigail E. Frawley, Barbara J. Pierce, Megan Skrip Oct 2021

How Birds During Migration Maintain (Oxidative) Balance, Scott R. Mcwilliams, Wales A. Carter, Clara Cooper-Mullin, Kristen J. Demoranville, Abigail E. Frawley, Barbara J. Pierce, Megan Skrip

Biology Faculty Publications

Animals dynamically adjust their physiology and behavior to survive in changing environments, and seasonal migration is one life stage that demonstrates these dynamic adjustments. As birds migrate between breeding and wintering areas, they incur physiological demands that challenge their antioxidant system. Migrating birds presumably respond to these oxidative challenges by up-regulating protective endogenous systems or accumulating dietary antioxidants at stopover sites, although our understanding of the pre-migration preparations and mid-migration responses of birds to such oxidative challenges is as yet incomplete. Here we review evidence from field and captive-bird studies that address the following questions: (1) Do migratory birds build …


The Effects Of Dietary Linoleic Acid And Hydrophilic Antioxidants On Basal, Peak, And Sustained Metabolism In Flight‐Trained European Starlings, Wales A. Carter, Kristen J. Demoranville, Barbara J. Pierce, Scott R. Mcwilliams Feb 2020

The Effects Of Dietary Linoleic Acid And Hydrophilic Antioxidants On Basal, Peak, And Sustained Metabolism In Flight‐Trained European Starlings, Wales A. Carter, Kristen J. Demoranville, Barbara J. Pierce, Scott R. Mcwilliams

Biology Faculty Publications

Dietary micronutrients have the ability to strongly influence animal physiology and ecology. For songbirds, dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and antioxidants are hypothesized to be particularly important micronutrients because of their influence on an individual's capacity for aerobic metabolism and recovery from extended bouts of exercise. However, the influence of specific fatty acids and hydrophilic antioxidants on whole‐animal performance remains largely untested. We used diet manipulations to directly test the effects of dietary PUFA, specifically linoleic acid (18:2n6), and anthocyanins, a hydrophilic antioxidant, on basal metabolic rate (BMR), peak metabolic rate (PMR), and rates of fat catabolism, lean catabolism, and …


Dietary Antioxidants Attenuate The Endocrine Stress Response During Long-Duration Flight Of A Migratory Bird, Stefania Casagrande, Kristen J. Demoranville, Lisa Trost, Barbara J. Pierce, Amadeusz Bryła, Maciej Dzialo, Edyta T. Sadowska, Ulf Bauchinger, Scott R. Mcwilliams Jan 2020

Dietary Antioxidants Attenuate The Endocrine Stress Response During Long-Duration Flight Of A Migratory Bird, Stefania Casagrande, Kristen J. Demoranville, Lisa Trost, Barbara J. Pierce, Amadeusz Bryła, Maciej Dzialo, Edyta T. Sadowska, Ulf Bauchinger, Scott R. Mcwilliams

Biology Faculty Publications

Glucocorticoids (GCs) are metabolic hormones that promote catabolic processes, which release stored energy and support high metabolic demands such as during prolonged flights of migrating birds. Dietary antioxidants (e.g. anthocyanins) support metabolism by quenching excess reactive oxygen species produced during aerobic metabolism and also by activating specific metabolic pathways. For example, similar to GCs’ function, anthocyanins promote the release of stored energy, although the extent of complementarity between GCs and dietary antioxidants is not well known. If anthocyanins complement GCs functions, birds consuming anthocyanin-rich food can be expected to limit the secretion of GCs when coping with a metabolically challenging …


Phylogenetic Reanalysis Of Strauch's Osteological Data Set For The Charadriiformes, Philip C. Chu Feb 1995

Phylogenetic Reanalysis Of Strauch's Osteological Data Set For The Charadriiformes, Philip C. Chu

Biology Faculty Publications

Strauch's (1978) compatibility analysis of relationships among the shorebirds (Charadriiformes) was the first study to examine the full range of charadriiform taxa in a reproducible way. Subsequently Mickevich and Parenti (1980) leveled serious charges against Strauch's characters, method of phylogenetic inference, and results. To account for these charges, Strauch's characters were re-examined and recoded, and parsimony analyses were performed on the revised matrix. A parsimony analysis on 74 taxa from the revised matrix yielded 855 shortest trees, each length = 286 and consistency index = 0.385. In each shortest tree there were two major lineages, a lineage of sandpiper-like birds …