Molt and the basic plumage of male Harlequin Ducks.

dc.contributor.authorCooke, F
dc.contributor.authorRobertson, G.J.
dc.contributor.authorGoudie, R.I.
dc.contributor.authorBoyd, W.S.
dc.date.accessioned2012-04-24T03:22:00Z
dc.date.available2012-04-24T03:22:00Z
dc.date.issued1997-02
dc.description.abstractUsing observations on 28 individually marked male Harlequin Ducks from mid-June until late November, we describe plumage changes which occur as individuals proceed from the alternate plumage through basic to the return of the new alternate plumage. We also describe the timing of these events, at the individual and population level. Conspicuous white tertial feathers which become visible early in the period of the basic plumage present a challenge to existing theories to explain the function of the drab basic plumage. We hypothesize that these feathers act as a badge of quality and are used as a sexual signal to other birds. Intra-sexual competition among males to assess the quality of rival males prior to subsequent pair formation is a proposed function of this feather badge.
dc.identifier.citationThe Condor 99,1 (1997): 83-90
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10315/13803
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherUniversity of California Press
dc.rights.articlehttp://www.jstor.org/stable/1370226
dc.rights.journalhttp://ucpressjournals.com/journal.php?j=conden_US
dc.rights.publisherhttp://ucpressjournals.com
dc.subjectalternate plumage
dc.subjectbadges
dc.subjectbasic plumage
dc.subjectHarlequin Ducks
dc.subjectHistrionicus histrionicus
dc.subjectmolt
dc.subjectsexual selection
dc.titleMolt and the basic plumage of male Harlequin Ducks.
dc.typeArticle

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