Signaling stress? An analysis of phaeomelanin-based plumage color and individual corticosterone levels at two temporal scales in North American barn swallows, Hirundo rustica erythrogaster

Sexually selected traits confer greater reproductive benefits to individuals with more elaborate forms of the signal. However, whether these signals convey reliable information about the physiology underlying trait development remains unknown in many species. The steroid hormone corticosterone (CORT) mediates important physiological and behavioral processes during the vertebrate stress response, and CORT secretion itself can […]