You Can't Judge a Pigment by its Color: Carotenoid and Melanin Content of Yellow and Brown Feathers in Swallows, Bluebirds, Penguins, and Domestic Chickens

• Published in: The Condor
• Main Authors: McGraw, Kevin J., Wakamatsu, Kazumasa, Ito, Shosuke, Nolan, Paul M., Jouventin, Pierre, Dobson, F. Stephen, Austic, Richard E., Safran, Rebecca J., Siefferman, Lynn M., Hill, Geoffrey E., Parker, Robert S.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press (OUP) 2004
• Subjects: Eudyptes chrysolophus; King Penguins
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/condor/106.2.390; http://academic.oup.com/condor/article-pdf/106/2/390/29712439/condor0390.pdf

Abstract The two main pigment types in bird feathers are the red, orange, and yellow carotenoids and the black, gray, and brown melanins. Reports conflict, however, regarding the potential for melanins to produce yellow colors or for carotenoids to produce brown plumages. We used high-performance liquid chromatography to analyze carotenoids and melanins present in the yellow and brown feathers of five avian species: Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis), Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica), King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus), Macaroni Penguins (Eudyptes chrysolophus), and neonatal chickens (Gallus domesticus). In none of these species did we detect carotenoid pigments in feathers. Although carotenoids are reportedly contained in the ventral plumage of European Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica rustica), we instead found high concentrations of both eumelanins and phaeomelanins in North American Barn Swallows (H. r. erythrogaster). We believe we have detected a new form of plumage pigment that gives penguin and domestic- chick feathers their yellow appearance. No Puedes Juzgar un Pigmento por su Color: Contenido de Carotenoide y Melanina de Plumas Amarillas y Marrones en Golondrinas, Azulejos, Pingüinos y Gallinas Domésticas Resumen. Los dos tipos principales de pigmentos que las aves incorporan en sus plumas son carotenoides, para desarrollar plumajes rojo, naranja o amarillo, y melaninas, para adquirir coloración negra, marrón, gris o tonalidades color tierra. Sin embargo, existe información conflictiva sobre la potencial coloración de plumas amarillas basadas en melanina y la presencia de caroteniodes en el plumaje marrón de ciertas especies. En este estudio, usamos cromatografía líquida de alto rendimiento para analizar los tipos y cantidades de carotenoides y melaninas presentes en las plumas amarillas y marrones de cinco especies de aves: el azulejo Sialia sialis y la golondrina Hirundo rustica, los pingüinos Aptenodytes patagonicus y Eudyptes chrysolophus y el plumón natal amarillo de la gallina doméstica Gallus ...