The importance of white on black: unmelanized plumage proportion predicts display complexity in birds

Galván, Ismael

doi:10.1007/s00265-008-0662-9

Cited by 47 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…The probability of generating patches of different colours might increase with the number of feathers on which those colours are shown. This would be probably true even if relative patch size would decrease with body size, as many small patches are not perceived as well as larger patches (Galván 2008). Therefore, a negative relationship between body size and plumage colour heterogeneity among species of birds is predicted again.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…There is ample evidence supporting the importance of ambient light as an agent affecting plumage colour heterogeneity (Owens 2006), but this cannot be applied to certain taxonomic groups where other evolutionary forces are acting (Preston 1980, Bretagnolle 1993, Badyaev 1997a,b, Saetre et al 1997, Galván 2008. In order to have a more general explanation for the observed heterogeneity in plumage colouration within individuals, more basic questions are needed.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Comparing canopy-with ground-living tropical birds, they concluded that the former group of species has a larger variety of hues as a consequence of the broader spectrum of wavelengths to which they are exposed. Apart from these general patterns, other ecological pressures better explain interspecific variation in plumage colour in certain taxonomic groups, such as risk of hybridization with closely related species (Saetre et al 1997), altitudinal distribution (Badyaev 1997a,b), display complexity (Galván 2008) or foraging and hunting mode (Preston 1980, Bretagnolle 1993. Therefore, the basic question formulated in the previous paragraph is probably better addressed through the study of why some species have a large colour heterogeneity while others are uniformly coloured, independently of the intensity of each colour they present.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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On Showy Dwarfs and Sober Giants: Body Size as a Constraint for the Evolution of Bird Plumage Colouration

Galván¹,

Negro

Rodríguez

et al. 2013

Acta Ornithologica

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Abstract. The evolution of bird plumage colouration may be explained by a wide range of selective pressures, including both defensive and advertising needs. However, the relationship between plumage colouration and body size has never been investigated in detail. Here we hypothesize that body size represents a constraint for the evolution of plumage colour heterogeneity because the relative number of body feathers was suggested to increase as body size decreases, and in the case of carotenoid-based colourations because the concentrations of circulating carotenoids decrease with increasing body size. Here we test these predictions on a dataset comprising measurements of male plumage colour heterogeneity using a model of avian visual perception in 111 species from 55 families of birds. A test of the correlation between number of feathers and body size in 92 species of birds showed a positive, instead of negative as previously suggested, association between these variables. As predicted, there was a negative relationship between plumage colour heterogeneity (measured as colour span, a measure of the contrast among colour patches) and body size after controlling for the effects of phylogeny, sexual dichromatism, colour vision type and habitat, and we suggest that the negative allometry shown by carotenoid levels may be the mechanism responsible for this negative relationship. Plumage colour heterogeneity was lower in species inhabiting open environments than in more vegetated habitats. Our results offer a general explanation for interspecific variation in bird colour heterogeneity through an association with body size.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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On Showy Dwarfs and Sober Giants: Body Size as a Constraint for the Evolution of Bird Plumage Colouration

Galván¹,

Negro

Rodríguez

et al. 2013

Acta Ornithologica

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“…The expression of plumage colour generated by melanins is intrinsically related to oxidative stress (i.e. the imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species and the state of the antioxidant and repair machinery; Galván andAlonso-Alvarez 2008, 2009;Galván and Solano 2009), and novel habitat changes such as pine plantations can cause physiological stress (i.e. physiological, hormonal or behavioural changes that occur as a response to unpredictable and noxious stimuli; sensu Romero 2004) in birds (Badyaev 2005), which in turn can induce oxidative stress (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bird species in Mediterranean pine plantations exhibit different characteristics to those in natural reforested woodlands

Galván

Benayas

2010

Oecologia

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Passive woodland regeneration following cropland abandonment and pine plantations are two major approaches for vegetation restoration in agricultural landscapes in the Mediterranean Basin. We compared the effects of these two contrasting approaches on local bird density in central Spain on the basis of species characteristics, including regional density, habitat breadth, life-history traits and plumage colouration. Local bird density increased with regional density and habitat breadth in both woodland and pine plantation plots following macroecological patterns of bird abundance and distribution. In woodlands, dichromatic species were more abundant than monochromatic species and bird density increased with the intensity of territory defense and as the proportion of plumage colour generated by pheomelanin decreased. Contrary to our prediction, this latter observation suggests that woodlands may induce higher levels of physiological stress in birds than pine plantations even though these represent a novel habitat change. In pine plantations, sedentary species were more abundant than migratory species and bird density was negatively related to body and egg mass. These traits of bird species in pine plantations are characteristic of successful invaders. The variation in bird density explained by phylogeny was twice as high in pine plantations as in woodlands, suggesting that pine plantations limit accessibility to some clades. Our results support, from an evolutionary perspective, the described inability of pine plantations on cropland to maintain or increase bird diversity in Mediterranean agricultural landscapes.

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“…Kose and Moller 1999). Additionally, the contrast of the white with the background or dark plumage parts may be an important signal, as it can improve the perception of displays or the signaller itself (Galvan 2008). To investigate whether white plumage may serve as a signal of quality in male upland geese, we examined the relationship between achromatic plumage reflectance, male condition, and female reproductive investment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Male achromatic wing colouration is related to body condition and female reproductive investment in a dichromatic species, the upland goose

Gladbach

Quillfeldt

2010

J Ethol

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In many bird species, achromatic plumage patch size can serve as a male status signal, but the use of variations in the achromatic colours themselves as a quality signal has only recently come into focus. In our study, we sought to determine whether achromatic plumage reflects individual quality in the upland goose (Chloephaga picta leucoptera). We examined the relationship between male head and wing reflectance, male condition and female reproductive investment. We found that males with darker specula and greater contrast between the white wing coverts and the speculum were in a better body condition. Variations in the brightness of the white plumage were not a quality signal in the upland goose. The information gleaned from the wing colouration of male upland geese could be used during mate selection, when females choose their mate on the basis of the outcomes of aggressive encounters. During these fights, the males expose their white coverts and their specula, which are normally tucked beneath body feathers.

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The importance of white on black: unmelanized plumage proportion predicts display complexity in birds

Cited by 47 publications

References 51 publications

On Showy Dwarfs and Sober Giants: Body Size as a Constraint for the Evolution of Bird Plumage Colouration

On Showy Dwarfs and Sober Giants: Body Size as a Constraint for the Evolution of Bird Plumage Colouration

Bird species in Mediterranean pine plantations exhibit different characteristics to those in natural reforested woodlands

Male achromatic wing colouration is related to body condition and female reproductive investment in a dichromatic species, the upland goose

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