Avian eggshell color seems to fulfill multiple functions, some of them being structural and others signaling. In this study, we tested whether or not eggshell coloration may play a role in sexual selection of Tree Sparrows (Passer montanus). According to the "Sexually selected eggshell coloration" hypothesis, eggshell coloration signals female, egg or chick quality and males adjust parental inv...

BACKGROUND The exceptional diversity of coloration found in avian eggshells has long fascinated biologists and inspired a broad range of adaptive hypotheses to explain its evolution. Three main impediments to understanding the variability of eggshell appearance are: (1) the reliable quantification of the variation in eggshell colours; (2) its perception by birds themselves, and (3) its relation...

The effect of moult on eggshell mechanical properties, on composition and concentrations of organic matrix components and on eggshell microstructure was investigated. The observed changes were studied to understand the role of organic matrix and eggshell microstructure in eggshell strength. Moult was induced by zinc oxide (20 g zinc/kg diet) in 53 ISA Brown laying hens at 78 weeks of age. No di...

The eggshell of the hen is a highly ordered and mineralised structure, which is sequentially deposited within an acellular milieu – the uterine fluid secreted by the distal oviduct. Spherulitic crystal growth of calcite is initiated on organic aggregates on surface of the eggshell membranes, followed by competition between radial crystallites for space to form a compact columnar biomineral. The...

Using ancient DNA (aDNA) extracted from eggshell of the extinct moa (Aves: Dinornithiformes) we determined the species composition and number of eggs found in a late thirteenth century earth oven feature at Wairau Bar (South Island, New Zealand) – one of New Zealand’s most significant archaeological sites. Mitochondrial and nuclear DNA signatures confirmed this oven feature contained fragments ...

Embryos of oviparous Reptilia (=turtles, lepidosaurs, crocodilians and birds) extract calcium for growth and development from reserves in the yolk and eggshell. Yolk provides most of the calcium to embryos of lizards and snakes. In contrast, the eggshell supplies most of the calcium for embryonic development of turtles, crocodilians and birds. The yolk sac and chorioallantoic membrane of birds ...

This study attempted to clarify the difference in eggshell pigmentation between blue-shelled ducks (BSD) and whiteshelled ducks (WSD). The eggshell pigmentation deposition process is discussed. Ultraviolet spectro-photometer and HPLC were used to determine the biliverdin concentration in the shell gland, uterus liquid and eggshell at 6, 12, 18, 20, 23.5 h post-oviposition. The biliverdin concen...

A mechanism for eggshell production in Schistosoma mansoni has been proposed (Wells & Cordingley, 1991), and suggests that the release of eggshell protein globules from the vitelline cells occurs under alkaline conditions within the ootype followed by their subsequent fusion to form the eggshell. Fusion and tanning of these components produces eggshell which autofluoresces. The present study wa...

Owing to exceptional biomolecule preservation, fossil avian eggshell has been used extensively in geochronology and palaeodietary studies. Here, we show, to our knowledge, for the first time that fossil eggshell is a previously unrecognized source of ancient DNA (aDNA). We describe the successful isolation and amplification of DNA from fossil eggshell up to 19 ka old. aDNA was successfully char...

The first clutch of Mesozoic eggs containing embryos was collected more than twenty years ago from the Rooidraai locality in Golden Gate Highlands Park, South Africa. The Elliot Formation crops out throughout the area, and although the sediments exposed at Rooidraai were once thought to be Late Triassic in age, they are now regarded as Early Jurassic. The Elliot Formation preserves a rich terre...