Reduced sexual dichromatism, mutual ornamentation, and individual quality in the monogamous Zenaida dove, Zenaida aurita

Although variation in plumage coloration is known to occur both between and within sexes, its study remains limited to a few bird families. The Zenaida dove, Zenaida aurita, is a socially monogamous tropical columbid bird species, characterized by an overall cinnamon-brownish plumage and structural colorations on the head and neck. The species has been described as sexually dichromatic for plumage, although color differences between males and females are not obvious in the field. We investigated variation in the presumably melanin-based color of the crown, mantle, breast, and belly, in the iridescent dark-blue streaks on the head, and in the symmetric iridescent patches on the neck, over the whole spectrum visible to birds. Further, unlike most previous studies, we assessed covariation between plumage color and phenotypic traits in both males and females in relation to the putative signaling function of ornaments. Zenaida doves appeared to be slightly sexually dichromatic for the hue of...