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Nocturnal birds could communicate through the fluorescence of their feathers

Many nocturnal animals, including invertebrates such as scorpions and a variety of vertebrate species, including toadlets, flying squirrels, owls, and nightjars, emit bright fluorescence under ultraviolet light. However, the ecological significance of this unique coloration so attached to nocturnality remains obscure. An intensively studied population of migratory red-necked nightjars (Caprimulgus ruficollis) was used to investigate inter-individual variation in porphyrin-based pink...

Feather content of porphyrins in Eurasian eagle owl fledglings depends on body condition and breeding site quality

Porphyrins are pigments produced in most animal cells during the synthesis of heme, but their importance for external coloration is unclear. Owls are among the few animals that accumulate porphyrins in the integument, where it could serve as a means of signaling. Here authors hypothesized that the porphyrin content of feathers may depend on body condition and breeding site quality in Eurasian eagle owl fledglings.