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Plumage (from Latin pluma 'feather') is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, there can be different colour morphs.
Molting helps birds maintain optimal feather condition for flight and allows them to replace worn-out feathers and remove parasites, Prum said. Young birds might also look different than their ...
Although feathers are light, a bird's plumage weighs two or three times more than its skeleton, since many bones are hollow and contain air sacs. Color patterns serve as camouflage against predators for birds in their habitats, and serve as camouflage for predators looking for a meal. As with fish, the top and bottom colors may be different, in ...
Müller's explanation of the mechanism for this was one of the first uses of mathematics in biology. He argued that a predator, such as a young bird, must attack at least one insect, say a wasp, to learn that the black and yellow colours mean a stinging insect. If bees were differently coloured, the young bird would have to attack one of them also.
Its plumage varies with location, with birds being coloured from all-white to dark brown. These colour variations are called morphs . Like other falcons, it shows sexual dimorphism , with the female much larger than the male.
Also, nuptial plumage; breeding plumage. The plumage of birds during the courtship or breeding season. ... it is the diminutive of ala, meaning 'wing'.
If, by chance, the bird is looking away from you, then Doolittle believes that the red Cardinal has messages for you, but "you may be missing [them] by being too busy or too distracted from your ...
The Colours of Animals is a zoology book written in 1890 by Sir Edward Bagnall Poulton (1856–1943). It was the first substantial textbook to argue the case for Darwinian selection applying to all aspects of animal coloration.