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Hegyi G, Laczi M, Szabó G, Sarkadi F, Török J. Plumage color degradation indicates reproductive effort: an experiment. Sci Rep 2023; 13:18770. [PMID: 37907494 PMCID: PMC10618437 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-45348-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/18/2023] [Indexed: 11/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Plumage color has traditionally been regarded as a static ornamental trait, but evidence is accumulating for significant color changes without molt that typically reduce the conspicuousness of ornamentation. In some species, the social partner seems to increase its reproductive investment if the color trait is experimentally enhanced, suggesting that color change could act as a signal. However, the information content of this signal is so far unclear. For example, birds in poor condition or making greater effort may deteriorate more severely. We used brood size manipulations to alter the reproductive effort of male and female collared flycatchers Ficedula albicollis. Both sexes showed less severe decline in some reflectance attribute of their white breast when their brood was experimentally reduced. In each sex, greater deterioration of the reflectance trait affected by the manipulation was accompanied by increased feeding rate by the partner. These feeding patterns do not prove, but are consistent with, a compensatory response by the partner to induced degradation. The manipulation effects on color change we detected confirm for the first time that plumage color deterioration can indicate current reproductive effort, thereby providing a potential fitness advantage to social partners that react to such deterioration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gergely Hegyi
- Behavioral Ecology Group, Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest, Hungary.
- HUN-REN-ELTE-MTM Integrative Ecology Research Group, 1117 Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest, Hungary.
| | - Miklós Laczi
- Behavioral Ecology Group, Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest, Hungary
- HUN-REN-ELTE-MTM Integrative Ecology Research Group, 1117 Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest, Hungary
- Barn Owl Foundation, Temesvári út 8, 8744, Orosztony, Hungary
| | - Gyula Szabó
- Behavioral Ecology Group, Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Fanni Sarkadi
- Behavioral Ecology Group, Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest, Hungary
| | - János Török
- Behavioral Ecology Group, Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, 1117 Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest, Hungary
- HUN-REN-ELTE-MTM Integrative Ecology Research Group, 1117 Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest, Hungary
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2
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Zheng K, Liang D, Wang X, Han Y, Griesser M, Liu Y, Fan P. Contrasting coloured ventral wings are a visual collision avoidance signal in birds. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20220678. [PMID: 35858052 PMCID: PMC9257291 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.0678] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Collisions between fast-moving objects often cause severe damage, but collision avoidance mechanisms of fast-moving animals remain understudied. Particularly, birds can fly fast and often in large groups, raising the question of how individuals avoid in-flight collisions that are potentially lethal. We tested the collision-avoidance hypothesis, which proposes that conspicuously contrasting ventral wings are visual signals that help birds to avoid collisions. We scored the ventral wing contrasts for a global dataset of 1780 bird species. Phylogenetic comparative analyses showed that larger species had more contrasting ventral wings than smaller species, and that in larger species, colonial breeders had more contrasting ventral wings than non-colonial breeders. Evidently, larger species have lower manoeuvrability than smaller species, and colonial-breeding species frequently encounter con- and heterospecifics, increasing their risk of in-flight collisions. Thus, more contrasting ventral wing patterns in these species are a sensory mechanism that facilitates collision avoidance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaidan Zheng
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China
| | - Dan Liang
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China,Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
| | - Xuwen Wang
- Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, IN 46225, USA
| | - Yuqing Han
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China
| | - Michael Griesser
- Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany,Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany,Department of Collective Behavior, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Yang Liu
- School of Ecology, Sun Yat-sen University, Shenzhen, People's Republic of China,State Key Laboratory of Biological Control, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China
| | - Pengfei Fan
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China,State Key Laboratory of Biological Control, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, People's Republic of China
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3
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Janas K, Gaweł P, Łatkiewicz A, Lutyk D, Gustafsson L, Cichoń M, Drobniak SM. Sexual dichromatism, size dimorphism, and microscale anatomy of white wing stripe in blue tits. Curr Zool 2021; 67:585-596. [PMID: 34805536 PMCID: PMC8599086 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoab011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2020] [Accepted: 01/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Achromatic patches are a common element of plumage patterns in many bird species and there is growing body of evidence that in many avian taxa they can play a signaling role in mate choice. Although the blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus is a well-established model species in the studies on coloration, its white wing patch has never been examined in the context of sex-specific trait expression. In this exploratory study, we examined sexual size dimorphism and dichromatism of greater covert’s dots creating white wing patch and analyzed its correlations with current body condition and crown coloration—a trait with established role in sexual selection. Further, we qualitatively analyzed microstructural barb morphology underlying covert’s coloration. We found significant sexual dimorphism in the dot size independent of covert size and sexual dichromatism in both white dot and blue outer covert’s vane spectral characteristics. Internal structure of covert barbs within the white dot was similar to the one found in barbs from the blue part that is, with a medullary area consisting of dead keratinocytes containing channel-type ß-keratin spongy nanostructure and centrally located air cavities. However, it lacked melanosomes which was the main observed difference. Importantly, UV chroma of covert’s blue vane was positively correlated with crown UV chroma and current condition (the latter only in males), which should be a premise for further research on the signal function of the wing stripe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarzyna Janas
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30- 387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Paulina Gaweł
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30- 387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Anna Łatkiewicz
- Institute of Geological Sciences, Faculty of Geography and Geology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30-387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Dorota Lutyk
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30- 387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Lars Gustafsson
- Department of Animal Ecology/Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18 D, 752 36, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Mariusz Cichoń
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30- 387, Kraków, Poland
| | - Szymon M Drobniak
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Jagiellonian University, Gronostajowa 7, 30- 387, Kraków, Poland.,School of Biological, Environmental and Earth Sciences, University of New South Wales, Biological Sciences Building (D26), Kensington Sydney, NSW 2052 Australia
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4
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Al Rubaiee Z, Al Murayati H, Tobolka M, Tryjanowski P, Møller AP. Not so black, not so white: differences in microorganism load of contiguous feathers from white stork chicks. Curr Zool 2021; 67:263-270. [PMID: 34616918 PMCID: PMC8489003 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoaa062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2019] [Accepted: 10/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Many organisms are characterized by strikingly contrasting black and white coloration, but the function of such contrasts has been inadequately studied. In this article, we tested the function of black and white contrasting plumage in white stork Ciconia ciconia chicks. We found greater abundance and diversity of microorganisms on black compared with adjacent white feathers. In addition, nest size was positively correlated with the abundance and diversity of microorganisms on white feathers. Flight initiation distance (FID), defined as the distance at which adult white storks took flight when approached by a human, was negatively correlated with most measurements of microorganism abundance. Breeding success was generally positively correlated with the abundance and diversity of microorganisms on black feathers. The feather growth rate was positively correlated with some and negatively correlated with other measurements of microbial abundance and diversity. Finally, chick growth was negatively correlated with the number of microbial species on black feathers and positively with the abundance and diversity of microorganisms on white feathers. These findings are consistent not only with the role of microorganisms in the maintenance of a benign microbial environment which differs between black and white feathers, but also with the hypothesis that several taxa of microorganisms found in black and white plumage are virulent, with negative effects on the fitness of their hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zaid Al Rubaiee
- Department of Biology, College of Science, Mustansiriya University, Baghdad, Iraq
| | - Haider Al Murayati
- Department of Biology, College of Science, Mustansiriya University, Baghdad, Iraq
| | - Marcin Tobolka
- Institute of Zoology, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, PL-60-625, Poland
| | - Piotr Tryjanowski
- Institute of Zoology, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznań, PL-60-625, Poland
| | - Anders Pape Møller
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, Université Paris-Sud, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, Orsay Cedex, F-91405, France
- College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
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5
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Negro JJ, Doña J, Blázquez MC, Rodríguez A, Herbert-Read JE, Brooke MDL. Contrasting stripes are a widespread feature of group living in birds, mammals and fishes. Proc Biol Sci 2020; 287:20202021. [PMID: 33049169 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Grouping is a widespread form of predator defence, with individuals in groups often performing evasive collective movements in response to attack by predators. Individuals in these groups use behavioural rules to coordinate their movements, with visual cues about neighbours' positions and orientations often informing movement decisions. Although the exact visual cues individuals use to coordinate their movements with neighbours have not yet been decoded, some studies have suggested that stripes, lines, or other body patterns may act as conspicuous conveyors of movement information that could promote coordinated group movement, or promote dazzle camouflage, thereby confusing predators. We used phylogenetic logistic regressions to test whether the contrasting achromatic stripes present in four different taxa vulnerable to predation, including species within two orders of birds (Anseriformes and Charadriiformes), a suborder of Artiodactyla (the ruminants), and several orders of marine fishes (predominantly Perciformes) were associated with group living. Contrasting patterns were significantly more prevalent in social species, and tended to be absent in solitary species or species less vulnerable to predation. We suggest that stripes taking the form of light-coloured lines on dark backgrounds, or vice versa, provide a widespread mechanism across taxa that either serves to inform conspecifics of neighbours' movements, or to confuse predators, when moving in groups. Because detection and processing of patterns and of motion in the visual channel is essentially colour-blind, diverse animal taxa with widely different vision systems (including mono-, di-, tri-, and tetrachromats) appear to have converged on a similar use of achromatic patterns, as would be expected given signal-detection theory. This hypothesis would explain the convergent evolution of conspicuous achromatic patterns as an antipredator mechanism in numerous vertebrate species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan J Negro
- Estación Biológica de Doñana-CSIC, Avda. Americo Vespucio 26, 41092 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Jorge Doña
- Illinois Natural History Survey, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1816 S. Oak St., Champaign, IL 61820, USA.,Departamento de Biología Animal, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - M Carmen Blázquez
- Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste (CIBNOR), 23096 La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico
| | - Airam Rodríguez
- Estación Biológica de Doñana-CSIC, Avda. Americo Vespucio 26, 41092 Sevilla, Spain.,Grupo de Ornitología e Historia Natural de las Islas Canarias, GOHNIC, Canarias, Spain
| | - James E Herbert-Read
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK.,Department of Biology, Aquatic Ecology Unit, Lund University, Lund 223 62, Sweden
| | - M de L Brooke
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing St, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
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6
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Cai YL, Mai CL, Yu X, Liao WB. Effect of population density on relationship between pre- and postcopulatory sexual traits. ANIM BIOL 2019. [DOI: 10.1163/15707563-20181057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Sexual selection theory states that the premating (ornaments and armaments) sexual traits should trade off with the postmating (testes and ejaculates) sexual traits, assuming that growing and maintaining these traits is expensive and that total reproductive investments are limited. Male-male competition and sperm competition are predicted to affect how males allocate their finite resources to these traits. Here, we studied relative expenditure on pre- and postmating sexual traits among 82 species for three mammalian orders with varying population density using comparative phylogenetic analysis. The results showed that population density affected sexual size dimorphism (SSD) in both Artiodactyla and Carnivora, but not in Primates. However, relative testis mass and sperm size were not affected by population density. Moreover, we did not find associations between the SSD and testis mass or sperm size in three taxonomic groups. The interspecific relationships between pre- and postcopulatory sexual traits did not change with increased population density. Our findings suggest that population density did not affect variation in the relationship between pre- and postcopulatory sexual traits for these three mammalian orders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun Lin Cai
- 1Department of Urology, the Second Clinical Medical College of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, 637000, China
| | - Chun Lan Mai
- 2Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation (Ministry of Education), China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, China
| | - Xin Yu
- 2Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation (Ministry of Education), China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, China
| | - Wen Bo Liao
- 2Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation (Ministry of Education), China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, China
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Møller AP. Experimental manipulation of size and shape of tail spots and sexual selection in barn swallows. Curr Zool 2018; 63:569-572. [PMID: 29492016 PMCID: PMC5804199 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zow098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2016] [Accepted: 09/23/2016] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Barn swallows Hirundo rustica have white spots on their tail feathers, and they have been hypothesized to be a handicap because white spots are prone to feather breakage, ectoparasites are disproportionately common in white spots, and size of white spots increases with tail length. Here I test for attractiveness of narrow and long tail spots by manipulation of their shape while using complete painting of spots and an absence of treatment as a control. Female barn swallows are known to differentially invest in reproduction when mated to attractive males. Spot manipulation took place during laying of the first clutch, and there were no effects of treatment on clutch size or brood size of first or second broods. In contrast, the incidence of second clutches and the total number of eggs and fledglings produced during the breeding season was larger in males with painting of the side of tail spots rather than painting of the tip of spots, painting of entire spots, or no treatment. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that it is the shape rather than the size of tail spots that affects differential reproductive effort by female barn swallows.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders P Møller
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, Orsay F-91400, France
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8
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Simmons LW, Lüpold S, Fitzpatrick JL. Evolutionary Trade-Off between Secondary Sexual Traits and Ejaculates. Trends Ecol Evol 2017; 32:964-976. [PMID: 29050795 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2017.09.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2017] [Revised: 09/21/2017] [Accepted: 09/22/2017] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Recent theoretical models predict that the evolutionary diversification of the weapons and ornaments of pre-mating sexual selection should be influenced by trade-offs with male expenditure on ejaculates. However, the patterns of association between secondary sexual traits and ejaculate expenditure are frequently inconsistent in their support of this prediction. We show why consideration of additional life-history, ecological, and mating-system variables is crucial for the interpretation of associations between secondary sexual traits and ejaculate production. Incorporation of these 'missing variables' provides evidence that interactions between pre- and post-mating sexual selection can underlie broad patterns of diversification in male weapons and ornaments. We call for more experimental and genetic approaches to uncover trade-offs, as well as for studies that consider the costs of mate-searching.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leigh W Simmons
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences (M092), The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley 6009, Australia.
| | - Stefan Lüpold
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - John L Fitzpatrick
- Department of Zoology and Ethology, Stockholm University, Svante Arrhenius väg 18B, SE-10691 Stockholm, Sweden
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9
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Caro T, Stankowich T, Mesnick SL, Costa DP, Beeman K. Pelage coloration in pinnipeds: functional considerations. Behav Ecol 2012. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/ars025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
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10
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RUIZ-DE-CASTAÑEDA RAFAEL, BURTT Jr EDWARDH, GONZÁLEZ-BRAOJOS SONIA, MORENO JUAN. Bacterial degradability of an intrafeather unmelanized ornament: a role for feather-degrading bacteria in sexual selection? Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2011.01806.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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11
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Hegyi G, Rosivall B, Szöllősi E, Eens M, Török J. Context-dependent effects of nestling growth trajectories on recruitment probability in the collared flycatcher. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2011. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-011-1175-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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12
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Møller AP, Erritzøe J. Why birds eat colourful grit: colour preferences revealed by the colour of gizzard stones. J Evol Biol 2009; 23:509-17. [PMID: 20050966 DOI: 10.1111/j.1420-9101.2009.01918.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Colour preferences from sexual or social contexts are assumed to have arisen owing to preferences for specific kinds of food, representing a sensory bias, but once colour preferences have evolved in a sexual context, they may also be expressed during foraging. We tested whether preferences for specific body colours (i.e. plumage and soft parts) were related to colour preferences for grit ingested by birds. Birds eat grit to facilitate break down of food by the gizzard, and this function is independent of the colour of grit, but depends on the physical properties of stones. Bird species were significantly consistent in colour of grit, and grit of different colours varied in prevalence among species, even when analyses were restricted to a sample from a single locality. There were positive correlations between presence of lilac and red grit in the gizzard and presence of sexually dichromatic lilac and red colour on the body. There was a positive correlation between red grit colour and red sexually monochromatic body colour. Bird species with many different sexual colours, but not sexually monochromatic colours on their body had many different colours of grit. Males had more lilac and red grit than females, with this effect differing among species, whereas that was not the case for grit of other colours. These findings are consistent with the sensory bias hypothesis that birds express preferences for grit of specific colours and a high diversity of colours related to sexual colouration of the body, even when the colour of such grit is only visible to the individual at the moment of ingestion.
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Affiliation(s)
- A P Møller
- Laboratoire d'Ecologie, Systématique et Evolution, CNRS UMR 8079, Université Paris-Sud, Orsay Cedex, France.
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Hegyi G, Møller AP, Eens M, Garamszegi LZ. Prevalence of avian influenza and sexual selection in ducks. Behav Ecol 2009. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arp133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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