Anatomy and histochemistry of flight muscles in a wing-propelled diving bird, the Atlantic Puffin,Fratercula arctica

Abstract

Twenty-three species within the avian family Alcidae are capable of wing-propelled flight in the air and underwater. Alcids have been viewed as Northern Hemisphere parallels to penguins, and have often been studied to see if their underwater flight comes at a cost, compromising their aerial flying ability. We examined the anatomy and histochemistry of select wing muscles (Mm. pectoralis, supracoracoideus, latissimus dorsi caudalis, coracobrachialis caudalis, triceps scapularis, and scapulohumeralis caudalis) from Atlantic puffins (Fratercula arctica) to assess if the muscle fiber types reveal the existence of a compromise associated with "dual-medium" flight. Pectoralis was found to be proportional in size with that of nondiving species, although the supracoracoideus was proportionally larger in puffins. Muscle fiber types were largely aerobic in both muscles, with two distinct fasttwitch types demonstrable: a smaller, aerobic, moderately glycolytic population (FOg), and a larger, moderately aerobic, glycolytic population (FoG). The presence of these two fiber types in the primary flight muscles of puffins suggests that aerial and underwater flight necessitate a largely aerobic fiber complement. We suggest that alcids do not represent an adaptive compromise, but a stable adaptation for wing-propelled locomotion both in the air and underwater.

Muscle architecture of the forelimb of the Golden Pheasant (Chrysolophus pictus) (Aves: Phasianidae) and its implications for functional capacity in flight

“…In the Golden Pheasant, this muscle comprises 13.4% of total body mass. Regarding the supracoracoideus, this muscle represents about 1.6% of the total body mass in volant birds and most non-diving birds, 4%-5% in wing-propelled diving birds (e.g., Atlantic Puffin) and 10%-12% in penguins (Greenwalt 1962;Poore et al 1997;Kovacs and Meyers 2000). Our results show that the supracoracoideus in the Golden Pheasant accounts for 3.9% of the total body mass of this species.…”

“…Our results show that the supracoracoideus in the Golden Pheasant accounts for 3.9% of the total body mass of this species. The relatively large supracoracoideus in alcids and other wingpropelled diving birds most likely evolved to raise the wing against the resistive drag of water (Kovacs and Meyers 2000). The pheasants use high-frequency, highamplitude wing beats during their explosive take-off flights and these attributes probably create a high inertial Figure 1 Mean muscle mass (± SD) as a proportion of total forelimb muscle mass for all muscles.…”

Muscle fiber characteristics of pectoralis major muscle as related to muscle mass in different Japanese quail lines

“…The pectoralis muscle of growth selected chickens is composed of almost entirely type IIB fibers; whereas, the volant species, including quail, are composed of type IIA and IIB fibers (Tobalske et al, 1997;Rosser et al, 1998). Thus, the muscle fiber characteristics of the pectoralis muscle match the daily activity patterns of different avian species (Rosser et al, 1998), and the diversity of fiber type composition in relation to the diversity of flight behaviors is demonstrated across bird species (Kovacs and Meyers, 2000).…”

The Vascular Arrangement and Main Branches of Arteria Axillaris in Wing of Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus)

“…There are many studies about wing muscles in bird species (Berger, 1953;Hudson and Lanzillotti, 1955;Kovacs and Meyers, 2000;Meyers and Stakebake, 2005;Zhang and Yang, 2013). Vascular organisation in wing arteries of predators are still insufficient despite the large number of wild bird species, the wide range of wing shapes in predatory birds, and variation in flight styles to capture their prey.…”