Diet and habitat aridity affect osmoregulatory physiology: An intraspecific field study along environmental gradients in the Rufous-collared sparrow

The urine field osmolality in Zonotrichia capensis along a latitudinal gradient in rainfall and temperature in Chile was examined. We also investigated latitudinal variation in the renal traits that mediate how these birds cope with dehydration. We used the δ¹⁵N of this species' tissue to investigate whether the reliance on animals and seeds varied among birds and if it had any effect on excretion and renal traits. We found a significant latitudinal variation in urine osmolality, a variable that was correlated with habitat aridity. We also found that the kidney size and proportion of kidney devoted to medullary tissue differed between birds from arid and mesic localities, but not in a lineal fashion with aridity. The increment in the position in the food web, as measured by δ¹⁵N, led to an increment in urine osmolality, without changes in kidney features. Our data suggested that differences in dietary habits in the field could be not extended enough to cause changes in the kidney structure in Rufous-collared sparrows.