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      Integrating morphology and kinematics in the scaling of hummingbird hovering metabolic rate and efficiency

      , , , ,
      Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
      The Royal Society

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          Abstract

          <p class="first" id="d1383667e245">Wing kinematics and morphology are influential upon the aerodynamics of flight. However, there is a lack of studies linking these variables to metabolic costs, particularly in the context of morphological adaptation to body size. Furthermore, the conversion efficiency from chemical energy into movement by the muscles (mechanochemical efficiency) scales with mass in terrestrial quadrupeds, but this scaling relationship has not been demonstrated within flying vertebrates. Positive scaling of efficiency with body size may reduce the metabolic costs of flight for relatively larger species. Here, we assembled a dataset of morphological, kinematic, and metabolic data on hovering hummingbirds to explore the influence of wing morphology, efficiency, and mass on hovering metabolic rate (HMR). We hypothesize that HMR would decline with increasing wing size, after accounting for mass. Furthermore, we hypothesize that efficiency will increase with mass, similarly to other forms of locomotion. We do not find a relationship between relative wing size and HMR, and instead find that the cost of each wingbeat increases hyperallometrically while wingbeat frequency declines with increasing mass. This suggests that increasing wing size is metabolically favourable over cycle frequency with increasing mass. Further benefits are offered to larger hummingbirds owing to the positive scaling of efficiency. </p>

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          Scaling

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            Phylogenies and the Comparative Method: A General Approach to Incorporating Phylogenetic Information into the Analysis of Interspecific Data

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              Wing rotation and the aerodynamic basis of insect flight.

              The enhanced aerodynamic performance of insects results from an interaction of three distinct yet interactive mechanisms: delayed stall, rotational circulation, and wake capture. Delayed stall functions during the translational portions of the stroke, when the wings sweep through the air with a large angle of attack. In contrast, rotational circulation and wake capture generate aerodynamic forces during stroke reversals, when the wings rapidly rotate and change direction. In addition to contributing to the lift required to keep an insect aloft, these two rotational mechanisms provide a potent means by which the animal can modulate the direction and magnitude of flight forces during steering maneuvers. A comprehensive theory incorporating both translational and rotational mechanisms may explain the diverse patterns of wing motion displayed by different species of insects.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
                Proc. R. Soc. B
                The Royal Society
                0962-8452
                1471-2954
                February 28 2018
                February 28 2018
                : 285
                : 1873
                : 20172011
                Article
                10.1098/rspb.2017.2011
                5832699
                29491168
                7cf93597-4dfd-4e76-a071-9fb8d13e70eb
                © 2018

                http://royalsocietypublishing.org/licence

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