Historical Contingency and Developmental Constraints in Avian Coloration

Klara K Nordén; Trevor D Price

doi:10.1016/j.tree.2018.05.003

Historical Contingency and Developmental Constraints in Avian Coloration

Trends Ecol Evol. 2018 Aug;33(8):574-576. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2018.05.003. Epub 2018 May 26.

Authors

Klara K Nordén¹, Trevor D Price²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA. Electronic address: knorden@princeton.edu.
² Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.

PMID: 29807840
DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2018.05.003

Abstract

The remarkable diversity of color in nature remains largely unexplained. Recent studies on birds show how historical reconstructions, the identification of genes affecting color differences, and an increased understanding of the underlying developmental mechanisms are helping to explain why species are the color they are.

Keywords: animal coloration; birds; developmental constraints.

MeSH terms

Adaptation, Biological / genetics
Animals
Biological Evolution*
Birds / classification
Birds / genetics*
Color
Color Vision*
Feathers / anatomy & histology
Genetic Variation
Pigmentation / genetics