Unusual Patterns of Incomplete Primary Molt in Laysan and Black-Footed Albatrosses

Replacement and growth of primary feathers in captive rock pigeons, Columba livia (Aves: Columbidae)

“…Difference in the lifetime of flight feathers may be responsible for the irregular sequence of feather replacement found here. However, there is not enough evidence to conclude that the Rock Pigeon has multiple waves of primary replacement, as found in many large birds (LANGSTON & ROHWER 1995, PYLE 2005, EDWARDS & ROHWER 2005. Most birds with body mass lower than 1kg (like the Rock Pigeon) replace all of their primaries annually, whereas most species weighting more than 3kg molt their primaries over two or more years (ROHWER et al 2009).…”

“…Multiple waves of feather replacement occur in two ways. In some birds such as albatrosses and falcons, the primaries are molted into two or more nonsimultaneous replacement series on each wing (MILLER 1941, LANGSTON & ROHWER 1995, PYLE 2005, EDWARDS & ROHWER 2005, while in other birds the primaries of each wing undergo two or more distinct waves of feather replacement, at the same time and in the same direction (ROHWER & WANG 2010).…”

The flight feather moult pattern of the bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus)

“…4) showed that before outer primaries or some secondaries of the fourth and fifth foci (S10 and S13) were moulted for the first time, birds had replaced inner primaries and secondaries for the second time. Langston and Rohwer (1995) suggested that Laysan (Phoebastria immutabilis) and Black-footed Albatrosses (Pygathrix nigripes) more often replace those primaries that drag on the sand of the atolls where the birds breed and become severely abraded. In the same line, Brommer et al (2003) showed that Ural Owls (Strix uralensis) more often replace outer primaries, suggesting that the allocation of position-specific energetic costs may benefit large birds.…”

Replacement rules for the flight feathers of Yellow-billed Cuckoos (Coccyzus americanus) and Common Cuckoos (Cuculus canorus)

“…Verheyen (1950), Stresemann (1961), andHamner (1995) have all written extensively on the replacement of the flight feathers of cuckoos, but all implicitly assumed that the primaries constituted a single replacement series. Although morphologically defined as attaching to the bones of the hand, the primaries may be divided into two or more molt series (Miller 1941, Langston andRohwer 1995). When any group of flight feathers is divided into two or more series, the initiation of molt often varies between series across individuals (Yuri andRohwer 1997, Rohwer 2008).…”