Melanin-based trait predicts individual exploratory behaviour in siskins, Carduelis spinus

Individual behavioural differences, consistent over time and/or across situations, have been included under the term of personality. These behavioural differences have been shown to affect a variety of major ecological traits, all of which have a strong effect on the fitness of the individual. However, the personality of an individual could also have a strong influence on the decisions of other individuals, in situations such as selecting or avoiding a social companion or a mate. Under this scenario, indicators of different personalities would have evolved, but the possible signalling of personality has received little consideration to date. We hypothesized that birds can signal their personality through feather coloration and tested this hypothesis in siskins relating different colour patches to their exploration score. To measure exploration, we presented the siskins with a novel object and calculated how long they took to approach it. We found that siskins with larger black bibs showed shorter approach latencies. This finding supports the idea that plumage coloration traits can provide information about personality traits of the bearer.