Birds of a feather?

The Latin bird-name columba ‘pigeon, dove’ has often invited comparison with Proto-Slavic *gȍlǫbь ‘id.’, as well as with Greek κόλυμβος ‘grebe, diving bird’. However, the first comparison is formally problematic, while the second one is semantically difficult. The first section of the present paper discusses the etymology and derivational history of Lat. columba, concluding in favor of an IE formation probably parallel to, but not cognate with, the one reflected by Slavic. In the second section, Gk. κόλυμβος is discussed together with the verb κολυμβάω ‘to dive’, showing that the commonly assumed derivation of the latter from the former is unlikely. A new etymology is then proposed for this word-family, arguing that both κόλυμβος < *ḱolum‑gʷ(h₂)‑o‑ and the unattested *κολυμβᾱ‑ < *ḱolum‑gʷ(h₂)‑eh₂‑ inferrable from κολυμβάω arose from the univerbation of a syntagm *ḱolum gʷeh₂- ‘to go covered, to submerge oneself’. These forms would then be coradical of Gk. καλύπτω ‘to cover, hide’, ultimately reflecting the univerbation of a different periphrasis with the same noun *ḱol-u-/*ḱel-u- ‘cover’. The proposed derivation is supported by morphosyntactic parallels across IE and by phraseological collocations of κολυμβάω and καλύπτω in Greek itself.

Using miniaturized GPS archival tags to assess home range features of a small plunge-diving bird: the European Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)

Background The European Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) is a small plunge-diving bird, today considered a species of conservation concern in Europe given its rapid population decline observed across the continent. We implemented a pilot study aimed at providing first data allowing to: (1) assess home range features of the European Kingfisher for populations with unevenly distributed feeding habitats; (2) define conservation implications for habitats exploited by such populations; and (3) evaluate possibilities for developing GPS tracking schemes dedicated to home range studies for this species that could be possibly applied to other small plunge-diving birds. Methods In 2018 and 2019, we equipped 16 breeding European Kingfishers sampled within the marshes of the Gironde Estuary (France), with miniaturized and waterproof GPS archival tags deployed with leg-loop harnesses (total equipment mass = 1.4 g; average bird mass = 40.18 ± 1.12 g). Results On average, we collected 35.31 ± 6.66 locations usable for analyses, without a significant effect on bird body condition (n = 13 tags retrieved). Data analyses highlighted rather limited home ranges exploited by birds (average = 2.50 ± 0.55 ha), composed on average by 2.78 ± 0.40 location nuclei. Our results also underscore: (1) a rather important home range fragmentation index (0.36 ± 0.08); and (2) the use by birds of different types of small wetlands (wet ditches, small ponds or small waterholes), often exploited in addition to habitats encompassing nest locations. Conclusions Our study reveals interesting GPS tracking possibilities for small plunge-diving birds such as the European Kingfisher. For this species, today classified as vulnerable in Europe, our results underline the importance of developing conservation and ecological restoration policies for wetland networks that would integrate small wetlands particularly sensitive to global change.

Acceleration predicts energy expenditure in a fat, flightless, diving bird

Energy drives behaviour and life history decisions, yet it can be hard to measure at fine scales in free-moving animals. Accelerometry has proven a powerful tool to estimate energy expenditure, but requires calibration in the wild. This can be difficult in some environments, or for particular behaviours, and validations have produced equivocal results in some species, particularly air-breathing divers. It is, therefore, important to calibrate accelerometry across different behaviours to understand the most parsimonious way to estimate energy expenditure in free-living conditions. Here, we combine data from miniaturised acceleration loggers on 58 free-living Adélie penguins with doubly labelled water (DLW) measurements of their energy expenditure over several days. Across different behaviours, both in water and on land, dynamic body acceleration was a good predictor of independently measured DLW-derived energy expenditure (R2 = 0.72). The most parsimonious model suggested different calibration coefficients are required to predict behaviours on land versus foraging behaviour in water (R2 = 0.75). Our results show that accelerometry can be used to reliably estimate energy expenditure in penguins, and we provide calibration equations for estimating metabolic rate across several behaviours in the wild.

Microplastics in the diet of nestling double-crested cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus), an obligate piscivore in a freshwater ecosystem

Anthropogenic debris, namely plastic, is a concern across aquatic ecosystems worldwide, with freshwater systems being understudied relative to marine systems. In this study, we quantified and characterized debris in the diet of double-crested cormorant chicks (Phalacrocorax auritus) from three sites in two of the Laurentian Great Lakes to (i) determine whether or not the diet of double-crested cormorants in the Laurentian Great Lakes includes anthropogenic debris, (ii) characterize the size, shape, and type of debris incorporated, and (iii) examine relationships between the amount of debris ingested and their proximity to industrial–urban centres. Overall, >86% of cormorants in our study had anthropogenic debris (mostly fibers) in their digestive tracts with no correlation between site and the amount of debris ingested. The ingested debris includes microplastics, natural fibres from textiles, and other anthropogenic materials (e.g., glass). To the best of our knowledge, this is one of the first studies to examine anthropogenic debris in a diving bird in the Laurentian Great Lakes and one of few studies investigating this in freshwater birds.