Birds are fond of the color red as it is often used to attract mates in the wild. Scientists have now figured out how birds are turning yellow pigments in their diet into red.
The redder their colors are, the better it is for the birds. They can be more intimidating and more attractive for their mates.
Researchers from the Universidade do Porto in Portugal, the Washington University School of Medicine and Auburn University have teamed up to conduct a study to find out some birds create red pigments for their bodies. They have studied "red factor canaries which were bred out of wild red siskins and yellow canaries for nearly a century ago.
The scientists determined two specific regions in the red factor canary's DNA that were similar to what was found in the red siskin's DNA. Ultimately, it led to a cytochrome called P450 enzyme which was found on chromosome 8.
When the researchers examined the enzyme more, they found out that it was found in both tissues from the red factor canaries. It means that that gene was the source of the red ketocarotenoid pigments, Forbes reported.
"Birds also accumulate these same red pigments in one of the cone photoreceptor types in their retina to enhance color vision. We discovered a gene that codes for an enzyme that enables this yellow-to-red conversion in birds," said Miguel Carneiro from Universidade do Porto.
Another study was made by researchers from the University of Cambridge and the University of Sheffield. The cytochrome P450 gene was discovered through their comparisons of mutant zebra finches with yellow beaks and standard zebra finches with red beaks, Phys.org reported.
With two different studies referring to just one gene, it is now clear how birds can turn yellow pigments from their diet into red for their beaks, feathers and such. The color red is often associated with good genes in birds as it means they can transform the pigments.
The researchers want to conduct more studies to find out whether all birds use the said gene for converting yellow pigments into red. More bird species would hopefully be studied.