Data from: Bird predation selects for wing shape and coloration in a damselfly

Wing shape is related to flight performance, which is expected to be under
selection for improving flight behaviours such as predator avoidance.
Moreover, wing conspicuousness, usually involved in sexual selection
processes, is also relevant in terms of predation risk. In this study, we
examined how predation by a passerine bird, the white wagtail Motacilla
alba, selects wing shape and wing colour patch size in males of the banded
demoiselle Calopteryx splendens. The wing colour patch is intra- and
intersexually selected in the study species. In a field study, we compared
wings of live damselflies to wings of predated damselflies which are
always discarded after predation. Based on aerodynamic theory and a
previous study on wing shape of territorial tactics in damselflies, we
predicted an overall short and broad wing, with a concave front margin
shape to be selected by predation. This shape would be expected to improve
escaping ability. Moreover, we predicted that wing patch size should be
negatively selected by predation. We found that selection operated
differently on fore- and hindwings. In contrast to our predictions,
predation favoured a slender general forewing shape. However, the
predicted wing shape was favoured in hindwings. We also found selection
favouring a narrower wing colour patch. Our results suggest different
roles of fore- and hindwings in flight, as previously suggested for
Calopteryx damselflies and shown for butterflies and moths. Forewings
would be more involved in sustained flight and hindwings in flight
manoeuvrability. Our results differ somehow from a recently published work
in the same study system, but using another population, suggesting that
selection can fluctuate across space, despite the simplicity of this
predator–prey system.