scholarly journals Proximate Basis of Variation in Carotenoid Pigmentation in Male House Finches

The Auk ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 109 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoffrey E. Hill
Keyword(s):  
House Finches ◽  
Carotenoid Pigmentation ◽  
Male House

Plumage color as a dynamic trait: carotenoid pigmentation of male house finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) fades during the breeding season

2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (5) ◽  
pp. 734-738 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin J McGraw ◽  
Geoffrey E Hill
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Breeding Period ◽  
Carpodacus Mexicanus ◽  
Plumage Color ◽  
Direct Function ◽  
House Finches ◽  
Dynamic Trait ◽  
Mate Switching ◽  
Carotenoid Pigmentation ◽  
Male House

Evolutionary biologists studying sexually selected bird plumage generally consider this trait to be static throughout a breeding season and assign trait values to individuals on the basis of single measurements. We investigated the propensity for carotenoid-based color of feather patches in male house finches (Carpodacus mexicanus ( Muller, 1776)) to change during the breeding period. We recaptured and rescored 63 males and found that the hue of feathers faded significantly over the season. The degree of hue change was a direct function of the amount of time between plumage scores; feathers faded more as the interval between measurements increased. The magnitude of hue change was not, however, related to an individual's age or initial plumage redness, which suggests that certain birds are not more or less prone to fading. Collectively, these findings imply that researchers should more carefully track plumage color expression during the course of a year, as seasonal color shifts may have important consequences for late-season male–male competitive interactions and flexible female mating tactics (e.g., social mate switching, choice of extra-pair partners). Potential mechanisms for this seasonal plumage color shift are discussed.

scholarly journals Plumage Brightness and Breeding-Season Dominance in the House Finch: A Negatively Correlated Handicap?

The Condor ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 102 (2) ◽  
pp. 456-461 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin J. McGraw ◽  
Geoffrey E. Hill
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Social Dominance ◽  
Conclusive Evidence ◽  
Carpodacus Mexicanus ◽  
Honest Signal ◽  
Apparent Paradox ◽  
House Finches ◽  
Nonbreeding Season ◽  
Access To Food ◽  
Male House

Abstract A variety of observations indicate that the carotenoid-based coloration of male House Finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) is an honest signal of quality. Plumage redness in this species positively reveals male nutritional condition, over-winter survival, and nest attentiveness. As a result, in the breeding season, male House Finches with brighter ornamental plumage are preferred by females as social mates over males with drabber plumage. In the nonbreeding season, however, bright red plumage does not seem to confer an advantage in aggressive interactions, as males with drabber plumage tend to dominate males with brighter plumage. We investigated this apparent paradox by conducting a breeding-season dominance experiment using captive males. We paired unfamiliar males of contrasting plumage brightness in a series of dominance trials during the breeding season and found that drabber males were dominant to brighter males in competition for access to food. Furthermore, in two captive flocks of males, plumage brightness was significantly negatively associated with social dominance. Although we have no conclusive evidence to explain why drab male House Finches are dominant to bright males throughout the year, we believe that motivational asymmetry may contribute to the observed negative correlation between signal intensity and signaler quality (“negatively correlated handicap”). Drab males may be more willing to compete for access to food or to females than are bright males because of the nutritional and/or mating disadvantages from which they suffer.

Repeatability of combat rate across different group compositions in male house finches

Behaviour ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 155 (10-12) ◽  
pp. 883-904
Author(s):  
Masaru Hasegawa ◽  
Mathieu Giraudeau ◽  
Russell A. Ligon ◽  
Nobuyuki Kutsukake ◽  
Mamoru Watanabe ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physiological Stress ◽  
Male Identity ◽  
House Finches ◽  
Animal Contests ◽  
Focal Individual ◽  
Urban Males ◽  
Rural Sites ◽  
Group Compositions ◽  
Male House ◽  
Haemorhous Mexicanus

Abstract Studies of animal contests have focused on the probability of winning an encounter, because it directly affects the benefits of competition. However, the costs (e.g., physiological stress) and benefits of competition should also depend on the number of aggressive encounters per unit time (combat rate, hereafter) in which the focal individual is involved. Using colourful and drab male house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus) from urban and rural sites, we showed that combat rate was repeatable across the same and different group sizes for birds who won competitions. In addition, colourful urban males exhibited the lowest propensity for frequent aggression (and hence low combat rate). However, male bill size (another trait we previously found to correlate with male competitiveness in this species) was not related to aggressive propensity. Combat rate can be predicted by male identity and some, but not all, predictors of male competitiveness.

scholarly journals Plumage Variation, Plasma Steroids and Social Dominance in Male House Finches

The Condor ◽  
1994 ◽  
Vol 96 (3) ◽  
pp. 614-625 ◽  
Author(s):  
James R. Belthoff ◽  
Alfred M. Dufty, ◽  
Sidney A. Gauthreaux,
Keyword(s):  
Social Dominance ◽  
House Finches ◽  
Plasma Steroids ◽  
Male House

Carotenoid-based plumage coloration reflects feather corticosterone levels in male house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus)

2013 ◽  
Vol 67 (11) ◽  
pp. 1817-1824 ◽  
Author(s):  
Á. Z. Lendvai ◽  
M. Giraudeau ◽  
J. Németh ◽  
V. Bakó ◽  
K. J. McGraw
Keyword(s):  
Plumage Coloration ◽  
House Finches ◽  
Male House ◽  
Feather Corticosterone ◽  
Haemorhous Mexicanus

Bayesian estimation of competitiveness in male house finches: small-billed males are more competitive

2015 ◽  
Vol 108 ◽  
pp. 207-214 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masaru Hasegawa ◽  
Mathieu Giraudeau ◽  
Nobuyuki Kutsukake ◽  
Mamoru Watanabe ◽  
Kevin J. McGraw
Keyword(s):  
Bayesian Estimation ◽  
House Finches ◽  
Male House

scholarly journals Carotenoid Pigments in Male House Finch Plumage in Relation to Age, Subspecies, and Ornamental Coloration

The Auk ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 118 (4) ◽  
pp. 900-915 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caron Y. Inouye ◽  
Geoffrey E. Hill ◽  
Riccardo D. Stradi ◽  
Robert Montgomerie ◽  
C. Bosque
Keyword(s):  
Total Concentration ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Analytical Techniques ◽  
Carpodacus Mexicanus ◽  
Carotenoid Pigments ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Red Pigments ◽  
House Finches ◽  
Male House

Abstract Like males of many bird species, male House Finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) have patches of feathers with ornamental coloration that are due to carotenoid pigments. Within populations, male House Finches vary in expression of ornamental coloration from pale yellow to bright red, which previous research suggested was the result of variation in types and amounts of carotenoid pigments deposited in feathers. Here we used improved analytical techniques to describe types and amounts of carotenoid pigments present in that plumage. We then used those data to make comparisons of carotenoid composition of feathers of male House Finches at three levels: among individual males with different plumage hue and saturation, between age groups of males from the same population, and between males from two subspecies that differ in extent of ventral carotenoid pigmentation (patch size): large-patched C. m. frontalis from coastal California and small-patched C. m. griscomi from Guerrero, Mexico. In all age groups and populations, the ornamental plumage coloration of male House Finches resulted from the same 13 carotenoid pigments, with 3-hydroxy echinenone and lutein being the most abundant carotenoid pigments. The composition of carotenoids in feathers suggested that House Finches are capable of metabolic transformation of dietary forms of carotenoids. The hue of male plumage depended on component carotenoids, their relative concentrations, and total concentration of all carotenoids. Most 4-keto (red) carotenoids were positively correlated with plumage redness, and most yellow carotenoid pigments were negatively associated with plumage redness, although the strength of the relationship for specific carotenoid pigments varied among age groups and subspecies. Using age and subspecies as factors and concentration of each component carotenoid as dependent variables in a MANOVA, we found a distinctive pigment profile for each age group within each subspecies. Among frontalis males, hatch-year birds did not differ from adults in mean plumage hue, but they had a significantly lower proportion of red pigments in their plumage, and significantly lower levels of the red piments adonirubin and astaxanthin, but significantly higher levels of the yellow pigment zeaxanthin, than adult males. Among griscomi males, hatch-year birds differed from adults in plumage hue but not significantly in pigment composition, though in general their feathers had lower concentrations of red pigments and higher concentrations of yellow pigments than adult males. Both adult and hatch-year frontalis males differed from griscomi males in having significantly higher levels of most yellow carotenoid pigments and significantly lower levels of most red carotenoid pigments. Variation in pigment profiles of subspecies and age classes may reflect differences among the groups in carotenoid metabolism, in dietary access to carotenoids, or in exposure to environmental factors, such as parasites, that may affect pigmentation.

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