The darker the egg, the more devoted the father is

José Javier Cuervo
( Photo: eeza.csic.es )

In the role of a father, it seems that male starlings will be more enthusiastic if the eggs that their spouse looks are healthier, expressed in dark colors.

The researchers found that male starlings have a tendency to feed primers from dark blue eggs with twice the frequency of those that hatch from pale green fruits.

Scientists have wondered why some birds lay colorful eggs, while others breed softer eggs. Now they conjecture, at least in the starling flute, that the male considers the color density of the egg as an indicator of the health of the chicks, because the weak females tend to spawn pale eggs.

The finding is considered significant, because it demonstrates a rare example of reproductive selection, based on the signal of children's suitability, after they pair.

Dark eggs produced by healthy children. ( Photo: NewScientist .)

Colorless eggs are often laid out by weak females. ( Photo: NewScientist.)

The study was carried out by José Javier Cuervo and colleagues at the Spanish National Research Institute in Almeria. Initially, their work just proved the point that weaker females will produce pale eggs.

Thuan An