Major Fatty Acids in Migratory Bird Fat

Walker, Alma Toevs

doi:10.1086/physzool.37.1.30152320

Cited by 28 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…The present analyses include all lipids of the sparrow's body. Since greater amounts of oleic acid are present in the depot fat of some birds (Walker, 1964;Katz et al, 1966), the northward increase of lipid might result in a relative increase of oleic acid.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geographic Variation in the Bioenergetics of the House Sparrow

Blem¹

1973

Ornithological Monographs

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Geographic Variation in the Bioenergetics of the House Sparrow

Blem¹

1973

Ornithological Monographs

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“…The primary seasonal differences reflect the predominance of linoleic acid (18:2) in winter and the greater proportion of saturated fatty acids (myristic, 14:0; palmitic, 16:0, and stearic, 18:0) in spring and fall. The predominance oflinoleic acid in other avian tissues, especially in winter, has been noted in bobolinks, Dolichonyx oryzivorus, (Walker, 1964); juncos, Junco hyemalis (Bower and Helms, 1968); ptarmigan, Lagopus lagopus (West and Meng, 1968a); redpolls, Carduelisflammea (West and Meng, 1968b); and whitecrowned sparrows, Zonotrichia Ieucophrys gambetii (Morton and Liebman, 1974).…”

Section: Seasonal Changes In Body Mass and Compositionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Seasonal acclimatization to temperature in cardueline finches

et al. 1978

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1. Seasonal variation in body constituents and utilization of lipid, protein, and carbohydrate during cold stress in American goldfinches were studied to determine relations of these functions to the pronounced seasonal shift in thermogenic capacity documented in a previous study (Dawson and Carey, 1976). 2. Mean body mass for adults increases from a low of 11.4 g in July to a high of 15.1 g in December and January. Seasonal variation in lipid content accounts for the major part of the observed changes in body mass, but such variation in water and protein content is also appreciable. 3. Linoleic acid (18:2) is the predominant fatty acid in neutral lipids of liver, pectoralis muscle, and furcular depots at all seasons. Unsaturated fatty acids comprise a much greater proportion of total fatty acids in liver and pectoralis muscle during winter (71% and 73%, respectively) than in spring or fall. 4. Fasting winter goldfinches exposed to-10 ~ for 17 h overnight utilize significant amounts of body lipid. However, total body protein, liver and pectofalls muscle carbohydrate, and pectoralis muscle fatty acids do not differ significantly between control and cold-stressed individuals. 5. Glycogen stores in the pectoralis muscles are significantly higher in winter than in summer birds. Winter goldfinches exposed to-70 ~ utilize significant amounts of total body lipids and pectoralis glycogen. Birds tested in this manner in summer do not do so and quickly become hypothermic. 6. Histochemical characteristics and succinate oxidase activities of pectoralis muscles do not vary appreciably over the year. 7. Increased stores of body lipid and muscle carbohydrate and the ability to mobilize these substrates

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“…Three fatty acids (16:0, 18:1 and 18:2) usually comprise at least 75% of the fatty acids in body fat of birds during migration (Table 1). Songbirds may store more 18:0 during fall compared to spring migration (Table 1), although the few studies conducted since Walker (1964) do not support this claim. Discerning patterns in the relative abundance of these more common fatty acids in migrating birds is complicated because older studies analyzed the whole carcass so that structural and storage lipids were not separated whereas more recent studies focus on stored subcutaneous fat (Table 1).…”

Section: The Process Of Fattening and The Fatty Acid Composition Of Bmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flying, fasting, and feeding in birds during migration: a nutritional and physiological ecology perspective

McWilliams¹,

Guglielmo²,

Pierce³

et al. 2004

Journal of Avian Biology

401

315

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Unlike exercising mammals, migratory birds fuel very high intensity exercise (e.g., flight) with fatty acids delivered from the adipose tissue to the working muscles by the circulatory system. Given the primary importance of fatty acids for fueling intense exercise, we discuss the likely limiting steps in lipid transport and oxidation for exercising birds and the ecological factors that affect the quality and quantity of fat stored in wild birds. Most stored lipids in migratory birds are comprised of three fatty acids (16:0, 18:1 and 18:2) even though migratory birds have diverse food habits. Diet selection and selective metabolism of lipids play important roles in determining the fatty acid composition of birds which, in turn, affects energetic performance during intense exercise. As such, migratory birds offer an intriguing model for studying the implications of lipid metabolism and obesity on exercise performance. We conclude with a discussion of the energetic costs of migratory flight and stopover in birds, and its implications for bird migration strategies. Migration poses distinct physiological challenges for birds. For example, long-distance migrants rely virtually entirely on stored energy and nutrients to fuel each flight, and then must rapidly restore the necessary energy and nutrients at stopover sites along their migration route. Solutions to the physiological challenges associated with alternating intense exercise without feeding and then intense feeding and refueling at stopover sites are often physiologically incompatible. Determining how birds overcome these physiological challenges requires understanding how the physiological capabilities of exercising and fasting birds relate to the ecological conditions encountered during migration. This review focuses on the nutritional and physiological ecology of birds during migration. We discuss the current model of how birds fuel the costs of migration and the likely limiting steps in lipid transport and oxidation for exercising birds, and how lipid metabolism in birds is different from that in other vertebrates. We then place these aspects of the biochemistry and metabolism of birds during migration within an ecological context. We review selected aspects of the nutritional ecology of birds during migration with an emphasis on how birds accumulate fat stores, how fatty acid composition of diet influences composition of fat stores, and the effect of fatty acid composition of fat # JOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY REVIEW Reviews provide an opportunity to summarize existing knowledge within ornithological research, especially in areas where rapid and significant advances are occurring. Reviews should be concise and should cite all key references. An abstract is required.

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Major Fatty Acids in Migratory Bird Fat

Cited by 28 publications

References 8 publications

Geographic Variation in the Bioenergetics of the House Sparrow

Geographic Variation in the Bioenergetics of the House Sparrow

Seasonal acclimatization to temperature in cardueline finches

Flying, fasting, and feeding in birds during migration: a nutritional and physiological ecology perspective

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