Very pale Bar-tailed Godwit killed by Peregrine: evidence for the oddity effect?

摘要

Birds of a feather flock together. For everybody who has ever conducted a shorebird census it is obvious that most shorebird species do not assort randomly, but instead tend to aggregate with individuals of similar size or species (Krause & Ruxton 2002). Individuals with malformations in shape or colour cannot hide in groups of similar birds, and this note discusses the possible consequence of "standing out" in a crowd.