As a rule, soft parts do not withstand the ravages of time; hence, the majority of vertebrate fossils consist only of bones. Under these circumstances, a new discovery from the UNESCO World Heritage ...

Preen gland secretion causes hoopoes’ eggs to change color, possibly giving signals about the robustness of the mother bird, researchers have found. Hoopoe females use cosmetics on their eggs - and ...

The skin glands are widely used in pheromone production throughout the vertebrate worlds. Growing evidences show that birds also have chemical communication, but the uropygial (also called preen or ...

Researchers have analysed a well-preserved preening gland in a 48-million-year-old bird fossil and discovered original oil and wax molecules within it. The fossil is from the famous Messel locality in ...

Recent studies have deepened our understanding of the complex interplay between avian microbiomes and the uropygial gland, an exocrine organ that produces secretions critical for maintaining plumage ...

Hoopoe females use cosmetics on their eggs - and the eggs gradually change color when they are incubated, from bluish-grey to a more saturated greenish-brown. This happens because secretion from the ...