Influence of behavioural and morphological group composition on pigeon flocking dynamics.
| Autor: | Sankey DWE; Department of Biological Sciences, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, UK.; Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Exeter TR10 9FE, UK., Portugal SJ; Department of Biological Sciences, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham TW20 0EX, UK. |
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| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Zdroj: | The Journal of experimental biology [J Exp Biol] 2023 Aug 01; Vol. 226 (15). Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Aug 03. |
| DOI: | 10.1242/jeb.245776 |
| Abstrakt: | Animals rely on movement to explore and exploit resources in their environment. While movement can provide energetic benefits, it also comes with energetic costs. This study examines how group phenotypic composition influences individual speed and energy expenditure during group travel in homing pigeons. We manipulated the composition of pigeon groups based on body mass and leadership rank. Our findings indicate that groups of 'leader' phenotypes show faster speeds and greater cohesion than 'follower' phenotype groups. Additionally, we show that groups of homogenous mass composition, whether all heavy or all light, were faster and expended less energy over the course of a whole flight than flocks composed of a mixture of heavy and light individuals. We highlight the importance of considering individual-level variation in social-level studies, and the interaction between individual and group-level traits in governing speed and the costs of travel. Competing Interests: Competing interests The authors declare no competing or financial interests. (© 2023. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.) |
| Databáze: | MEDLINE |
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