Body mass data set for 1,317 bird and 270 mammal species from Colombia.

Body mass is one of the most important phenotypic attributes in animal ecology and life history. This trait is widely used in the fields of ecology and macroevolution, since it influences physiology, morphological functions, and a myriad of ecological and social interactions. In this data set, our aim was to gather a comprehensive bird and mammal body mass data set from northern South America. We report body mass, discriminated by sex, for 42,022 individual birds and 7,441 mammals representing 1,317 bird species (69% of Colombia's avifauna) and 270 mammal species (51% of Colombian mammals) from the Neotropics. The data were sourced from vouchers collected between 1942 and 2020 and from individuals captured and released at banding stations over the last two decades for birds (2000-2020) and the last decade for mammals (2010-2020), by 10 research groups and institutions in Colombia. This data set fills gaps identified in other similar databases, as it focuses on northern South America, a highly diverse Neotropical region often underrepresented in morphological data sets. We provide wide taxonomic coverage for studies interested in information both at regional and local scales. There are no copyright restrictions; the present data paper should be appropriately cited when data are used for publication. The authors would appreciate learning about research projects, teaching exercises, and other uses given to this data set and are open to contribute in further collaborations using these data.

A morphological database for 606 Colombian bird species.

Colombia is the country with the highest bird diversity in the world. Despite active research in ornithology, compelling morphological information of most bird species is still sparse. However, morphological information is the baseline to understand how species respond to environmental variation and how ecosystems respond to species loss. As part of a national initiative, the Instituto Alexander von Humboldt in collaboration with 12 Colombian institutions and seven biological collections, measured up to 15 morphological traits of 9,892 individuals corresponding to 606 species: 3,492 from individuals captured in field and 6,400 from museum specimens. Species measured are mainly distributed in high Andean forest, páramo, and wetland ecosystems. Seven ornithological collections in Colombia and 18 páramo complexes throughout Colombia were visited from 2013 to 2015. The morphological traits involved measurements from bill (total and exposed culmen, bill width and depth), wing (length, area, wingspan, and the distance between longest primary and longest secondary), tail (length and shape), tarsus (length), hallux (length and claw hallux), and mass. The number of measured specimens per species was variable, ranging from 1 to 321 individuals with a median of four individuals per species. Overall, this database gathered morphological information for >30% of Colombian bird diversity. No copyright, proprietary, or cost restrictions apply; the data should be cited appropriately when used.