Sexual dimorphism in bill morphology influences foraging strategies and bird competitive interactions. This study uses geometric morphometric analyses to examine sex-based differences in the bill shape and size of Ciconia ciconia, a large wading bird. Standardized dorsal and lateral photographs of 45 white storks (24 females and 21 males) were analyzed. The mean centroid size (CS) confirmed that males have significantly larger bills than females, yet principal component analysis revealed no reliable shape-based sex differentiation. Allometric analyses indicated that larger individuals exhibit more pronounced shape variations, likely tied to functional adaptations, though these were insufficient for sex determination. While bill size correlates with sex, shape variation does not serve as a reliable criterion for sexing C. ciconia. This study contributes to the understanding of sexual dimorphism in Ciconia ciconia by quantifying bill size differences using geometric morphometrics.

Background: Meloxicam (MLX) is a preferential cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor widely used in avian medicine as an anti-inflammatory agent. Despite marked interspecific variability in avian drug disposition, no pharmacokinetic data are available for MLX in the white stork ( Ciconia ciconia ). This study aimed to characterise and compare the plasma pharmacokinetics of MLX in this species. Methods: Six clinically stable, non-releasable white storks (three of each sex) received a single 1 mg/kg dose of MLX by the IM, SC and PO routes in a randomised three-way crossover design with a 2-week washout period between treatments. Plasma MLX concentrations were quantified up to 24 h using HPLC and analysed using non-compartmental methods. Results: Peak plasma concentrations (C _max ) differed significantly among all three routes (IM 11.49 ± 2.34, SC 6.43 ± 1.62, PO 1.53 ± 0.89 µg/mL; p < 0.05) and the median time to peak concentration (tmax) was progressively delayed from IM (0.67 h) through SC (2.00 h) to PO (4.00 h). Systemic exposure did not differ significantly between the IM and SC routes (AUC _0–24 h 80.7 ± 40.2 and 81.1 ± 22.7 µg·h/mL, respectively) and approximately 7-fold greater than after PO administration (11.9 ± 4.8 µg·h/mL; p < 0.05), corresponding to relative bioavailabilities versus IM of 100.4% for SC and 14.8% for PO. Terminal half-life progressively increased from IM (9.81 ± 2.30 h) through SC (15.13 ± 4.41 h) to PO (18.85 ± 2.16 h). Conclusion: SC administration may represent a practical parenteral alternative to IM, whereas PO administration displayed low and variable bioavailability in white storks.