How Tropical Birds Create Their Vibrant Colors - The Science Behind It!

From parrots to peacocks, we’re all familiar with brightly colored birds. Our feathered friends use vivid pigments to attract a mate – but where do they get their colors? And is it true that tropical birds are brighter than their cousins from the north?

Humboldt and Darwin certainly thought so – Yet it took scientists until 2022 to prove their theory right. Now, thanks to mathematical color analysis and over 24,000 images, we know that tropical birds are roughly 30% more colorful than temperate species! But where do their vivid pigments come from?Join us on a fascinating journey into birds’ feathers, where we discover the foods, pigments, and microstructures that make flamingos pink and turacos green.

For more amazing stories from the natural world, subscribe to our channel:
https://www.youtube.com/c/TerraMaterO...

💡 Want to know more wild facts? Check out our Wild to Know series:    • Wild to Know  

Chapters:
00:00 Get Ready for some Color!
00:41 Are Tropical Birds More Colorful?
01:33 Hey I see You! Subscribe! Please!
01:48 The Answer is ...
02:21 What Light has to do with Color
02:56 Pigments and the Visible Spectrum
03:34 Bernd the Bird and his Colors
04:10 Carotenoids
04:40 Parrots are Special
05:00 Melanin
05:39 Blue? Structural Coloration!
06:35 Green? Turacos and Mixing Color!
06:59 Why Tropical Birds really might be more Colorful!
08:04 This is the End my Friend.


Sources:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1P...

#tropicalbirds #colors #birds #terramater