Slight sexual dimorphism in tail-fork depth of Common Swifts Apus apus

• Published in: Ringing & Migration
• Main Authors: Jukema, Joop, van de Wetering, Henk, Gutiérrez, Jorge S., Piersma, Theunis
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: aerodynamics; biometry; Common Swift; morphometrics; natural selection; sexual selection; sexual size dimorphy; Apus apus
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/11370/9d1ec805-7147-4355-9b8f-91f0fecc5f9f; https://research.rug.nl/en/publications/9d1ec805-7147-4355-9b8f-91f0fecc5f9f; https://doi.org/10.1080/03078698.2023.2262804; https://pure.rug.nl/ws/files/925132018/Slight_sexual_dimorphism_in_tail-fork_depth_of_Common_Swifts_Apus_apus_1_.pdf; http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85174962939&partnerID=8YFLogxK

For two new data sets from the Netherlands, we show that male Common Swifts have deeper tail forks than females. Although this hints at sexual selection, with a degree of masculine extravagance at work, the male dimensions are closer to the design rules for an aerodynamically optimal swift than are those of females.