Do Birds See Colors?
Indeed they are. Birds have excellent color vision. Their bright colors are designed to impress rivals and court potential mates.
A red-winged blackbird displaying his colorful wing patches is telling other males that he is in command of his territory.
An ornithological study captured male Red-winged Blackbirds and temporarily dyed their red epaulets, so that they no longer appeared red.
Other Red-winged Blackbirds weren't impressed, and the dyed blackbirds were not able to keep their territories. Apparently the birds' loud calls and dramtic posture simply weren't enough. They need those red badges!
Birds may actually see color even better than people do. We humans can see a range of colors, but we do so by using three peaks of color sensitivity in cells in our eyes. The cells are especially receptive to violet, green, and yellow. Birds, however, have four areas of color sensitivity, including one for ultraviolet light. It is difficult for us to imagine what the world looks like to birds. We can be sure, though, that their experience of color is rich.
Some bright colors function mainly to attract a mate. A male goldfinch's bright yellow makes him attractive to females and improves his chance of finding a mate. Goldfinches produce their yellow color from the food they eat, so a male with a bright color is showing that he had a good diet and may be a good provider for the baby birds. No wonder the females like him.
Creating gorgeous colors takes energy. But birds do it because it helps them survive and reproduce. If the birds were color blind and could not see each other's colors, rivals wouldn't be intimidated, and potential mates wouldn't be impressed. Gorgeous birds like Roseate Spoonbills would not waste energy being colorful.
We humans are stunned by the beauty of birds' colors, and yet it's reasonable to suppose that birds see a more colorful world than we do. Since they use color as a criterion for choosing mates, it's not too far fetched to consider that birds may also have an experience of beauty, or that they have aesthetic taste. Perhaps they experience pleasure in color that is not entirely unlike what we feel when we see their beautiful plumage.