Interspecific hybridization explains rapid gorget colour divergence in Heliodoxa hummingbirds (Aves: Trochilidae).

ABSTRACT: Hybridization is a known source of morphological, functional and communicative signal novelty in many organisms. Although diverse mechanisms of established novel ornamentation have been identified in natural populations, we lack an understanding of hybridization effects across levels of biological scales and upon phylogenies. Hummingbirds display diverse structural colours resulting from coherent light scattering by feather nanostructures. Given the complex relationship between feather nanostructures and the colours they produce, intermediate coloration does not necessarily imply intermediate nanostructures. Here, we characterize nanostructural, ecological and genetic inputs in a distinctive Heliodoxa hummingbird from the foothills of eastern Peru. Genetically, this individual is cl

SUBMITTER: Eliason CM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9974296 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature