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Related Concept Videos

Migration00:53

Migration

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Migration is long-range, seasonal movement from one region or habitat to another. This common strategy, carried out by many different organisms around the world, is an adaptive response that typically corresponds to changes in an organism’s environment, like resource availability or climate. Migrations can involve huge groups of thousands of animals as well as single individuals traveling alone and can range from thousands of kilometers to just a few hundred meters.
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Mate choice—the decision about whom to mate with—is a type of natural selection, since animals must reproduce to pass down their genes. Mate choice is also called intersexual selection because the behavior occurs between the sexes.
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Conservation of declining population focuses on ways of detecting, diagnosing, and halting a population decline. The approach uses methods to prevent populations from going extinct.
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Natural selection influences the frequencies of particular alleles and phenotypes within populations in several different ways. Primarily, natural selection can be directional, stabilizing, or disruptive. Directional selection favors one extreme trait and shifts the population towards that phenotype while selecting against individuals displaying alternate traits. Stabilizing selection favors an intermediate trait with a narrow range of variation. Deviation from the optimal phenotype towards an...
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When the fitness of a trait is influenced by how common it is (i.e., its frequency) relative to different traits within a population, this is referred to as frequency-dependent selection. Frequency-dependent selection may occur between species or within a single species. This type of selection can either be positive—with more common phenotypes having higher fitness—or negative, with rarer phenotypes conferring increased fitness.
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Updated: Oct 10, 2025

Visually Sexing Loggerhead Shrike Lanius Ludovicianus Using Plumage Coloration and Pattern
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Migratory birds are lighter coloured.

Kaspar Delhey1, James Dale2, Mihai Valcu3

  • 1Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany; School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Australia.

Current Biology : CB
|December 7, 2021
PubMed
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Migratory birds evolved lighter plumage to avoid overheating during long flights. This adaptation helps them manage body temperature by reflecting more solar radiation, a key factor for endurance during migration.

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Area of Science:

  • Ornithology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Physiology

Background:

  • Migratory birds exhibit remarkable adaptations for long-distance travel.
  • Studies show increased flight altitudes during daytime migration, potentially for thermoregulation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if thermoregulation influences plumage color evolution in migratory birds.
  • To determine if migratory species have lighter-colored plumage compared to non-migratory species.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative analysis of plumage coloration across a wide range of avian species.
  • Statistical examination of the relationship between migratory behavior and plumage lightness.

Main Results:

  • Migratory avian species exhibit significantly lighter plumage coloration compared to non-migratory species.
  • This finding supports the hypothesis that lighter plumage aids in thermoregulation during migration.

Conclusions:

  • Plumage color is an evolved trait influenced by the selective pressures of migration.
  • Lighter, more reflective plumage in migratory birds likely helps mitigate heat load from solar radiation, enhancing migratory performance.