That Bird Blog – Bird Care and History for Pet Birds
People have long pondered the role that “looks” and personality play in our personal relationships. Recent studies of the House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus) suggest that similar considerations may arise when birds go courting as well.
Drab Plumage…No Problem!
Working with wild House Finches in Arizona, ornithologists from Cornell University and the University of Arizona determined that females preferred brightly-colored (red) males to duller, orange/yellow individuals (American Naturalist, September, 2010). The somberly-colored males, however, were not so easily put off. It seems that, in order to compete with “handsome” males, they become more sociable – “friendlier”, if you will – and in that way attract the attention of the otherwise uninterested females. Read More »