Re: Did Feathers Evolve for Dispaly? We Still Don't Know!

[Dann Pigdon <dannj@alphalink.com.au>]

On Mon, Feb 1st, 2010 at 9:28 AM, Nick Pharris <npharris@umich.edu> wrote:

> It's also worth bearing in mind that the so-called "white" areas on 
> 
> the tail of *Sinosauropteryx* are really just areas that lack
> melanin.  
>   There could still have been other pigments present (like  
> carotenoids, which produce hues in the yellow/orange/red range) that 
> 
> would not have been evident in the present study.

That's an excellant point. I've heard that zoos need to mix certain natural 
dyes into their flamingo 
food, otherwise the birds turn white. Apparently their pink colouration is due 
to pigments they 
injest from the crustaceans they filter out of the water.

There was a study many years ago that showed that dung-eating amongst certain 
vulture species 
in Africa supplies them with the carotenoids they require to keep the skin 
around their faces bright 
yellow.
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v416/n6883/full/416807a.html

-- 
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Dann Pigdon
GIS Specialist                         Australian Dinosaurs
Melbourne, Australia               http://home.alphalink.com.au/~dannj
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