Journal
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Volume 270, Issue 1523, Pages 1455-1460Publisher
ROYAL SOC
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2003.2390
Keywords
structural colour; feather nanostructure; sexual selection; Fourier analysis
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Evidence suggests that structural plumage colour can be an honest signal of individual quality, but the mechanisms responsible for the variation in expression of structural coloration within a species have not been identified. We used full-spectrum spectrometry and transmission electron microscopy to investigate the effect of variation in the nanostructure of the spongy layer on expression of structural ultraviolet (UV)-blue coloration in eastern bluebird (Sialia sialis) feathers. Fourier analysis revealed that feather nanostructure was highly organized but did not accurately predict variation in hue. Within the spongy layer of feather barbs, the number of circular keratin rods significantly predicted UV violet chroma, whereas the standard error of the diameter of these rods significantly predicted spectral saturation. These observations show that the precision of nanostructural arrangement determines some colour variation in feathers.
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