Implications of the forelimb myology on the Falconid habitats

MOSTO M.C; PICASSO M.B.J; KRONE OLIVER

Puerto Iguazú, Misiones

Congreso; ORNITHOLOGICALCONGRESS OF THE AMERICAS- XVII RAO, XXIV CBO, XCV AFO; 2017

Association of Field Ornithologists, Sociedade Brasileira de Ornitologia y Aves Argentina

The mass of a muscle or a functional group can provide information about theimportance of the muscles during locomotion. The Falconidae Family is composed ofthree subfamilies, which present different flight modes. The aim of this study was toexplore whether the main muscles of the humerus and ulna-radius have variations inmass that are indicative of their flying habits. A total of nine species that representedthe subfamilies (n= one to five specimens per species) were studied. The body mass andthe individual unilateral wing muscles were recorded, their proportions were calculatedand a principal component analysis (PCA) was performed for a selection of muscles ofthe humerus and ulna-radius (n = 11). The wing muscles ranged from 5.5% (Falcosubbuteo) to 11% (F. peregrinus) of the bodymass. The selection of some muscles inparticular was more informative for the subfamily segregation than all the muscles as awhole.The ACP showed that the muscles that contributed most to the variability amongthe subfamilies were the pectoralis, supracoracoideus and deltoids. This segregationcould be related to the degree of use of the flight to obtain food: The Falconinae speciesseek and hunt on the wing, whereas this is not the main habit in the Polyborinae as theymainly obtain their food from the ground and Micrastur (Herpetotherinae) flies amongdense vegetation to hunt prey, a habit that requires greater maneuverability