>It has always fascinated me how female kingfishers are more colorful than
>the males. I wonder how many other birds fit this pattern? My National
>Geographic Guide shows the ringed kingfisher female having more markings
>than the male (not more color, however), and the green kingfisher with
>reversed roles (the male has the rust band). It also appears that some of
>the trogon species have more colorful females than males. Has anyone
>noticed other species with this trait?
>
>wjansen

I have been out of town the last couple of days, birding no less, and so just
now saw this question. Eclectus parrots are probably the champ in the female
being more striking (at least to our eyes) than the male. However, in the
trees the female's colors actually look pretty dark. I once watched a pair of
them climbing about in a more or less "natural" exhibit in a zoo, where you
could get real close to them, and the most visible part of either bird, at
least at that range, was the male's bright upper mandible. I have often
wondered about this extreme dimorphism. They are, of course, cavity nesters
so they can get away with being colorful and all. In captivity the female of
this species is generally more agressive, but one thing I wonder about is
whether or not the females may even take more than one mate, in the wild.
Captive breeders generally mate one female with one male, presuming that all
large parrots are monogamous, but that may not be the best policy with
Eclectus. I have never seen anything in written about this, and wonder if
anyone knows of any good resources?
-------------------------------------
Name: Jerry Broadus
jbroadus at seanet.com
901-16th. St S.W.
Puyallup, Wa. 98371
206-845-3156
11/11/96
16:40:23