Presentation Details
Bobbing, Bending, Dipping, Tilting – What Are These Birds Doing and Why?

Dalton Brown, Nadje Najar.

Misssouri State University, Springfield, Missouri, USA

Abstract


Many terrestrial bird species incorporate characteristic head or whole-body movements variously described as ‘bobs’, ‘knee-bends’, ‘teetering’, ‘tilting’, ‘dipping’, etc. While many species are well-known to ‘teeter’ or ‘bend’, with at least one family named for it (the ‘dippers’), these behaviors are often treated as quirks of evolution and have not been formally or systematically described. It is currently unknown how widespread ‘bobbing’ behavior is in birds or what (if any) function it may serve. Bobbing behavior appears to be most common among small, terrestrial birds occupying relatively open habitats, and may be an adaptation for measuring distances via parallax. We will use a recent phylogeny of the Certhioidea (dippers, wrens, and allies) to systematically characterize the prevalence and possible ecological correlates of bobbing behavior, and to test the hypothesis that the evolution of bobbing and bending is correlated with ecological shifts. This poster will have a specific focus on Troglodytidae (Wrens).
 

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