Flight performance of western sandpipers <i>Calidris mauri</i> remains uncompromised when mounting an acute phase immune response

Nebel, Silke; Buehler, Deborah M.; Macmillan, Alexander; Guglielmo, Christopher G.

doi:10.1242/jeb.083204

Cited by 33 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 40 publications

(49 reference statements)

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“…Western sandpipers are shorebirds that have long-distance migratory routes. They were chosen because they were affected by the DWH spill and because of their applicability to methods used in metabolism and flight performance studies (Burns and Ydenberg, 2002;Nebel et al, 2013). The rock pigeon, although not a water-based bird such as those exposed to oil in the DWH spill, is a useful model to study the effects of oil exposure on flight dynamics and the metabolic challenges of migratory flight.…”

Section: Dwh Nrda Avian Toxicity Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reprint of: Overview of avian toxicity studies for the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment

Bursian

Alexander

Cacela

et al. 2017

Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety

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The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 establishes liability for injuries to natural resources because of the release or threat of release of oil. Assessment of injury to natural resources resulting from an oil spill and development and implementation of a plan for the restoration, rehabilitation, replacement or acquisition of natural resources to compensate for those injuries is accomplished through the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) process. The NRDA process began within a week of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which occurred on April 20, 2010. During the spill, more than 8500 dead and impaired birds representing at least 93 avian species were collected. In addition, there were more than 3500 birds observed to be visibly oiled. While information in the literature at the time helped to identify some of the effects of oil on birds, it was not sufficient to fully characterize the nature and extent of the injuries to the thousands of live oiled birds, or to quantify those injuries in terms of effects on bird viability. As a result, the US Fish and Wildlife Service proposed various assessment activities to inform NRDA injury determination and quantification analyses associated with the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, including avian toxicity studies. The goal of these studies was to evaluate the effects of oral exposure to 1-20ml of artificially weathered Mississippi Canyon 252 oil kg bw day from one to 28 days or one to five applications of oil to 20% of the bird's surface area. It was thought that these exposure levels would not result in immediate or short-term mortality but might result in physiological effects that ultimately could affect avian survival, reproduction and health. These studies included oral dosing studies, an external dosing study, metabolic and flight performance studies and field-based flight studies. Results of these studies indicated changes in hematologic endpoints including formation of Heinz bodies and changes in cell counts. There were also effects on multiple organ systems, cardiac function and oxidative status. External oiling affected flight patterns and time spent during flight tasks indicating that migration may be affected by short-term repeated exposure to oil. Feather damage also resulted in increased heat loss and energetic demands. The papers in this special issue indicate that the combined effects of oil toxicity and feather effects in avian species, even in the case of relatively light oiling, can significantly affect the overall health of birds.

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Section: Dwh Nrda Avian Toxicity Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reprint of: Overview of avian toxicity studies for the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment

Bursian

Alexander

Cacela

et al. 2017

Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety

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“…Morphological parameters of the birds, as well as parameters of the experiment, are summarized in table 1. The individual birds were excellent wind tunnel fliers that we selected from groups of birds that were used in previous experiments (starling [39], robin [40] and sandpiper [41]). Because these birds had been extensively trained to perform multi-hour flights for migration studies, they were very familiar with the wind tunnel and would fly reliably in a steady position for PIV measurements.…”

Section: Animalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flow pattern similarities in the near wake of three bird species suggest a common role for unsteady aerodynamic effects in lift generation

et al. 2017

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Analysis of the aerodynamics of flapping wings has yielded a general understanding of how birds generate lift and thrust during flight. However, the role of unsteady aerodynamics in avian flight due to the flapping motion still holds open questions in respect to performance and efficiency. We studied the flight of three distinctive bird species: western sandpiper ( Calidris mauri ), European starling ( Sturnus vulgaris ) and American robin ( Turdus migratorius ) using long-duration, time-resolved particle image velocimetry, to better characterize and advance our understanding of how birds use unsteady flow features to enhance their aerodynamic performances during flapping flight. We show that during transitions between downstroke and upstroke phases of the wing cycle, the near wake-flow structures vary and generate unique sets of vortices. These structures appear as quadruple layers of concentrated vorticity aligned at an angle with respect to the horizon (named ‘double branch’). They occur where the circulation gradient changes sign, which implies that the forces exerted by the flapping wings of birds are modified during the transition phases. The flow patterns are similar in (non-dimensional) size and magnitude for the different birds suggesting that there are common mechanisms operating during flapping flight across species. These flow patterns occur at the same phase where drag reduction of about 5% per cycle and lift enhancement were observed in our prior studies. We propose that these flow structures should be considered in wake flow models that seek to account for the contribution of unsteady flow to lift and drag.

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“…The asterisks (*) indicates that groups differ statistically (see results for details) of a mild (low-pathogenic influenza) virus infection are low (van Dijk, Fouchier, et al, 2015) compared to the acute phase response triggered by a (simulated) bacterial infection as in our study. While immune-challenged birds in our study delayed the next migratory flight, Western sandpipers (Calidris mauri) flown in a wind tunnel showed no reduction in flight performance after an endotoxin challenge (Nebel, Buehler, MacMillan, & Guglielmo, 2013). However, that study was done on captive birds which experienced no or little constraints and trade-offs and birds paid an immune cost for flying after the flight was completed.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 65%

A mimicked bacterial infection prolongs stopover duration in songbirds—but more pronounced in short‐ than long‐distance migrants

Hegemann

Abril

Sjöberg

et al. 2018

Journal of Animal Ecology

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Migration usually consists of intermittent travel and stopovers, the latter being crucially important for individuals to recover and refuel to successfully complete migration. Quantifying how sickness behaviours influence stopovers is crucial for our understanding of migration ecology and how diseases spread. However, little is known about infections in songbirds, which constitute the majority of avian migrants. We experimentally immune-challenged autumn migrating passerines (both short- and long-distance migrating species) with a simulated bacterial infection. Using an automated radiotelemetry system in the stopover area, we subsequently quantified stopover duration, "bush-level" activity patterns (0.1-30 m) and landscape movements (30-6,000 m). We show that compared to controls, immune-challenged birds prolonged their stopover duration by on average 1.2 days in long-distance and 2.9 days in short-distance migrants, respectively (100%-126% longer than controls, respectively). During the prolonged stopover, the immune-challenged birds kept a high "bush-level" activity (which was unexpected) but reduced their local movements, independent of migration strategy. Baseline immune function, but not blood parasite infections prior to the immune challenge, had a prolonging effect on stopover duration, particularly in long-distance migrants. We conclude that a mimicked bacterial infection does not cause lethargy, per se, but restricts landscape movements and prolongs stopover duration, and that this behavioural response also depends on the status of baseline immune function and migration strategy. This adds a new level to the understanding of how acute inflammation affect migration behaviour and hence the ecology and evolution of migration. Accounting for these effects of bacterial infections will also enable us to fine-tune and apply optimal migration theory. Finally, it will help us predicting how migrating animals may respond to increased pathogen pressure caused by global change.

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Flight performance of western sandpipers Calidris mauri remains uncompromised when mounting an acute phase immune response

Abstract: SUMMARY

Cited by 33 publications

References 40 publications

Reprint of: Overview of avian toxicity studies for the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment

Reprint of: Overview of avian toxicity studies for the Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Damage Assessment

Flow pattern similarities in the near wake of three bird species suggest a common role for unsteady aerodynamic effects in lift generation

A mimicked bacterial infection prolongs stopover duration in songbirds—but more pronounced in short‐ than long‐distance migrants

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