Extreme offspring ornamentation in American coots is favored by selection within families, not benefits to conspecific brood parasites.

ABSTRACT: Offspring ornamentation typically occurs in taxa with parental care, suggesting that selection arising from social interactions between parents and offspring may underlie signal evolution. American coot babies are among the most ornamented offspring found in nature, sporting vividly orange-red natal plumage, a bright red beak, and other red parts around the face and pate. Previous plumage manipulation experiments showed that ornamented plumage is favored by strong parental choice for chicks with more extreme ornamentation but left unresolved the question as to why parents show the preference. Here we explore natural patterns of variation in coot chick plumage color, both within and between families, to understand the context of parental preference and to determine whose fitness interests a

SUBMITTER: Lyon BE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6995015 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature