The avian egg exhibits general allometric invariances in mechanical design

Scientific Reports
Jia-Yang JuangHsin-I Hsieh

Abstract

The avian egg exhibits extraordinary diversity in size, shape and color, and has a key role in avian adaptive radiations. Despite extensive work, our understanding of the underlying principles that guide the "design" of the egg as a load-bearing structure remains incomplete, especially over broad taxonomic scales. Here we define a dimensionless number C, a function of egg weight, stiffness and dimensions, to quantify how stiff an egg is with respect to its weight after removing geometry-induced rigidity. We analyze eggs of 463 bird species in 36 orders across five orders of magnitude in body mass, and find that C number is nearly invariant for most species, including tiny hummingbirds and giant elephant birds. This invariance or "design guideline" dictates that evolutionary changes in shell thickness and Young's modulus, both contributing to shell stiffness, are constrained by changes in egg weight. Our analysis illuminates unique reproductive strategies of brood parasites, kiwis, and megapodes, and quantifies the loss of safety margin for contact incubation due to artificial selection and environmental toxins. Our approach provides a mechanistic framework for a better understanding of the mechanical design of the avian egg, an...Continue Reading

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Citations

Feb 28, 2018·Journal of Evolutionary Biology·D Charles Deeming, Gerald Mayr
Aug 30, 2019·Ecology and Evolution·Tomás RedondoJenő Nagy
Jan 5, 2021·Journal of Morphology·Daniel G Blackburn, James R Stewart
Aug 28, 2021·Biology·An YenJia-Yang Juang

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