| carotenoids in bird plumage: the complement of red pigments in the plumage of wild and captive bullfinch (pyrrhula pyrrhula). | we have studied the carotenoid pigments in the red plumage of male bullfinch (pyrrhula pyrrhula) immediately following capture and after the completion of the moult in captivity under dietary control. astaxanthin, adonirubin, and alpha-doradexanthin, as well as papilioeritrinone and canthaxanthin (in lower amounts) are in every case the dominant carotenoids in the plumage pigment of wild individuals. alpha-doradexanthin is responsible for the reddish-rose colour, which captive individuals adopt ... | 2001 | 11250548 |
| phylogeography of crossbills, bullfinches, grosbeaks, and rosefinches. | mitochondrial cytochrome b (cyt b) from 24 carduelini species including crossbills, bullfinches, grosbeaks, rosefinches, and other related, but not conclusively classified species, was sequenced. these sequences were also compared with all the available sequences from the genera carduelis, serinus, and passer. phylogenetic analyses consistently gave the same groups of finches and the calculated divergence times suggest that speciation of the studied species occurred between 14 and 3 million year ... | 2001 | 11529508 |