There are over 10,000 species of birds in the world, displaying an incredible diversity of colors and plumage. However, while we can easily name red, blue, green, and yellow birds, purple is a much rarer color to find naturally occurring in avian species. This raises an interesting question – are there any truly purple birds that exhibit this color without artificial enhancement?
In this article, we’ll explore the possibilities and define exactly what makes a bird purple. Get ready for a deep dive into ornithology, physics, and the surprising science behind avian coloration! We’ll cover what colors make up purple, look at optical effects that can give the appearance of purple, and highlight a few special species that come closest to this elusive hue.
Whether by an accident of genetics or a trick of the light, a truly purple bird is an exceptionally rare find. As we’ll see, there are a handful of examples, but most fall just short of true violet and lean more blue or red instead. The quest for a genuinely purple feathered friend may be quixotic, but it provides a fascinating window into the way color works in birds. So let’s take flight – it’s time to go birding for purple!
What Makes a Bird Purple?
To understand if any birds are truly purple, we first need to define what exactly makes a color purple. Purple sits at the end of the visible spectrum between red and blue. In terms of physics, purple wavelengths range from around 380-450 nm.
But we don’t see color solely based on wavelength. Our eyes also perceive color based on combinations of cone cells in our retinas that are sensitive to red, blue and green wavelengths. This means we can see purple not only from a single wavelength, but also by mixing deep red and blue light. This makes purple one of the rarer avian colors.
For a bird to appear purple, its feathers must produce a pure purple wavelength through structural coloration, or have pigments that reflect deep red and blue to mix and produce the perception of purple. Iridescent feathers can also split light to give off a purple sheen. Very few birds can achieve these effects, but we’ll highlight some special ones who come close.
Plumage Producing Purple Effects
Let’s survey some of the interesting ways birds can produce purple hues or a violet sheen using specialized plumage:
Structural Coloration
Some birds like hummingbirds have feathers with nanoscale structures that interfere with light waves to produce pure purple wavelengths through a process called structural coloration. While hummingbirds appear more pink or crimson, certain lighting can reveal more purple iridescence.
Pigment Combinations
The mixing of red and blue melanin pigments in feathers can make plumage appear purple. However, most examples lean more strongly reddish or bluish-purple. Still, the right combination can produce a true violet color.
Iridescence
When light hits layers of iridescent feathers at certain angles, it can be split into spectrum colors including purple. This occurs in birds like pigeons and grackles. The effect is fleeting but can flash brilliant violet under the right conditions.
Dyed Plumage
In captive birds, purple dyeing of white feathers is sometimes used for ornamentation. However, artificially colored birds do not count as naturally purple species.
As we’ll see next, these mechanisms produce more of a purple sheen than consistent true purple plumage. But a few unusual species stand out by coming tantalizingly close.
Near Misses: Birds That Come Close to Purple
Here are some special birds that exhibit plumage near to true purple, making them the closest examples found in nature:
Purple Grenadier
The striking Purple Grenadier hummingbird is found in Ecuador and Colombia. In the right light, the males flash a brilliant violet throat that represents one of the closest examples to true purple in birds. Their color comes from structural coloration scattering light at ultraviolet wavelengths and mixing red and blue pigments in their feathers.
Pin-tailed Manakin
This small fruit-eating manakin inhabiting Central and South America sports deep purple feathers on its crown and partly down its back. The vibrant color results from a combination of red and blue melanin pigments in the specialized crown feathers. When illuminated, the blue-purple irridescence is strikingly obvious.
Indian Purple Cochoa
The male cochoa, a passerine songbird of the Indian subcontinent, displays a rich purple-blue hue on its neck, breast, and underside. While more blue-toned than violet, the deep saturated color produced by pigment combinations makes the cochoa one of the finest examples of a “purple” bird.
False Grackle
Though not truly purple overall, the False or Greater Blue-eyed Grackle exhibits a stunning bright purple iridescence on its black feathers when light catches it just right. This momentary glint comes from optical interference patterns in its plumage.
Why True Purple Birds Are So Rare
After evaluating many species, true purple birds remain elusive. This may be because birds lack the particular pigment combinations and feather structures to reflect light with a consistent purple hue. Here are some of the main limitations:
– Avian melanins lean more blue or red, not deep purple.
– Iridescence produces only a brief purple flash.
– Structural coloration trends toward reddish iridescence in birds.
– Evolution may simply not have selected for true purple plumage.
While many birds certainly appear purple-tinged, after digging into ornithology we find that genuinely violet-colored species remain vanishingly rare. There are a handful of examples that come tantalizingly close, but fall just short of true rich purple plumage.
Are There Any Fully Purple Birds?
Based on our survey, do any birds fully qualify as being truly purple? A few special species like the Purple Grenadier come close. However, even these singular birds do not display consistent purple plumage across all conditions. Their hues shift from blue to violet based on lighting and viewing angle.
In the end, while some birds reveal a fleeting purple sheen, or mix pigments to near-purple, a bird species exhibiting pure brilliant purple across its entire body appears to be the stuff of imagination. Physics, physiology and evolution have simply not combined to produce a known uniformly purple avian example…yet!
The Quest Continues
The search for a truly purple bird will continue, as new species are still being discovered each year. Perhaps one day a bright vivid purple species will be documented, finally providing a perfect example. For now, we have a handful of rare and striking species that come tantalizingly close with their purple iridescence, violet breast plumage, or mix of blue and red melanins. Keep birdwatching, and you may just spot a perfect purple outlier. From flashy starlings to gleaming hummingbirds, the avian world still holds many surprises!
Conclusion
In this article, we’ve undertaken an in-depth ornithological quest to find naturally occurring purple birds. By surveying specialized feather structures, optical effects, pigment combinations and unusual species, we discovered some birds that come close with metallic violet iridescence or near-purple hues. However, a truly uniformly brilliant purple bird remains elusive in nature. The few purple-ish examples fall just short, proving that birds lack the precise convergence of physics and evolution to produce pure purple plumage. Still, it’s been a thrilling ride through the fascinating science of avian color. And the search continues for that possibly mythical perfect purple bird. Maybe one day an incredible discovery will reward this quixotic quest!
| Bird Species | Purple Coloration |
|---|---|
| Purple Grenadier | Violet iridescent throat |
| Pin-tailed Manakin | Deep purple crown feathers |
| Indian Purple Cochoa | Purple-blue breast plumage |
| False Grackle | Momentary bright purple iridescence on feathers |
