What causes the intense purple coloration seen in the male Costa's Hummingbird gorget?
Answer
Structural light, not pigment
The brilliant, vivid purple hue displayed in the male Costa's Hummingbird's gorget is not produced by traditional chemical pigments deposited in the feather structure. Instead, the coloration is a result of structural optics. This means the microscopic structure of the feathers interacts with incident light in such a way that it selectively reflects only the purple wavelengths back to the observer. This phenomenon, known as structural coloration, is what causes the intense iridescence, making the color highly dependent on the angle at which the sunlight hits the display.
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