Use of anthropogenic material for extended ornamented phenotype in two fairy-wrens

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Kennerley , Ryan Jack , Jon Coleman , Michael S. Webster , View ORCID Profile William E. Feeney , View ORCID Profile Jordan Boersma doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.10.06.680756 Jaden Salett 1 Cornell Lab of Ornithology , Ithaca, NY, USA Find this author on Google Scholar Find this author on PubMed Search for this author on this site ORCID record for Jaden Salett For correspondence: jet243{at}cornell.edu jordan.boersma{at}gmail.com James A. Kennerley 1 Cornell Lab of Ornithology , Ithaca, NY, USA Find this author on Google Scholar Find this author on PubMed Search for this author on this site ORCID record for James A. Kennerley Ryan Jack 1 Cornell Lab of Ornithology , Ithaca, NY, USA Find this author on Google Scholar Find this author on PubMed Search for this author on this site Jon Coleman 2 Queensland Bird Research and Banding Group , Birds Queensland, Brisbane, AUS 3 Wildlife Research and Education Institute , Brisbane, AUS Find this author on Google Scholar Find this author on PubMed Search for this author on this site Michael S. Webster 1 Cornell Lab of Ornithology , Ithaca, NY, USA 4 Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University , Ithaca, NY, USA Find this author on Google Scholar Find this author on PubMed Search for this author on this site William E. Feeney 3 Wildlife Research and Education Institute , Brisbane, AUS 5 Doñana Biological Station , Seville, ESP Find this author on Google Scholar Find this author on PubMed Search for this author on this site ORCID record for William E. Feeney Jordan Boersma 1 Cornell Lab of Ornithology , Ithaca, NY, USA Find this author on Google Scholar Find this author on PubMed Search for this author on this site ORCID record for Jordan Boersma For correspondence: jet243{at}cornell.edu jordan.boersma{at}gmail.com Abstract Full Text Info/History Metrics Preview PDF Abstract Birds often advertise their quality to potential mates through sexual displays that complement their colorful plumage. Some species use materials to enhance their attractiveness, such as the use of colorful fruits and anthropogenic materials in the display bowers across bowerbirds. Here we report the first observations of anthropogenic materials in sexual displays by two fairy-wren species. On two separate occasions and sites, we witnessed a White-winged and Red-backed male carrying a piece of plastic as a substitute for a flower petal during a petal display, which are used across Malurus to enhance reproductive fitness. Given increasing plastic pollution globally, the use of anthropogenic materials as part of extended phenotypes in birds and other animals will likely increase and it will be important to understand the effect this has on populations. Introduction Sexually selected ornaments are well documented across avian taxa, typically involving colourful plumage that aids in attraction of mates ( Moller and Pomiankowski 1993 ). Some passerines further advertise their quality through alterations of the physical environment, i.e. through their extended phenotype ( Dawkins 1982 ; Turner 2004 ; Schaedelin and Taborsky 2009 ; Blamires 2013 ; Wells 2015 ). For instance, Black Wheatears ( Oenanthe leucura ) signal mate quality by carrying heavy stones to nest sites ( Moreno et al . 1994 ), bowerbirds (Ptilonorhynchidae) build and decorate elaborate display arenas ( Borgia 1985 ), and fairy-wrens (Maluridae) present colourful natural materials as nuptial gifts to females ( Rowley 1991 ; Karubian and Alvarado 2003 ; Boersma et al . 2023 ). Fairy-wrens ( Malurus sp.) are model organisms for sexual selection studies owing to their elaborate plumage, sexual display behaviour, and pronounced sexual promiscuity ( Dunn and Cockburn 1999 ; Webster et al., 2007 , 2008 ). Male fairy-wrens will often embark on extra-territorial forays to display to extra-pair females to enhance their reproductive fitness ( Rowley 1991 ; Karubian and Alvarado 2003 ). Several Malurus species often use extended phenotypes, presenting flower petals, berries, or leaves to extra-pair females that complement or contrast with their sexually-selected plumage ( Rowley 1991 ). While these so-called ‘petal displays’ are well documented in this genus, here we report for the first time the use of anthropogenic materials during such displays in two fairy-wren species. Study Sites The White-winged Fairy-wren Malurus leucopterus observation was made on the outskirts of the City of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Western Australia, at South Boulder waste water treatment plant (WWTP) (30°48’33”S 121°29’35”E). The area was dominated by saltbush ( Atriplex sp.) and bluebush ( Maireana sp.) and is interspersed with scattered Eucalyptus trees. There was minimal ground cover leaving the bare lateritic soils exposed between the shrubs and trees. As this was an active work site, the habitat was heavily disturbed with damaged vegetation, tyre tracks gouging deep ruts, soil heaped into mounds and ridges and there was rubbish scattered across the landscape including many pieces of white soft plastic caught on shrubs and fences. The Red-backed Fairy-wren M. melanocephalus observation reported here occurred at a long-term bird ecology field site in Southeast Queensland on the western fringe of Lake Samsonvale (27°16′S, 152°51′E). The study site hosts many habitats, ranging from grassland with sparse Eucalyptus species to remnant old-growth rainforest and lake-edge wetlands. The dominant understory species is the invasive Lantana camara , which is present across habitats at our site. Three fairy-wren species are present at the site: Red-backed, Superb M. cyaneus , and Variegated M. lamberti of which most are colour-banded including approximately 200 Red-backed Fairy-wrens. Study efforts at this site began in 2012 and occur annually (except 2020–21) from July to January, and center on colour-banding and monitoring nests of all three fairy-wren species. Nests are marked using orange flagging tape tied to trees and shrubs 5–10m from nests to allow efficient navigation to nests during checks by personnel. Many broad-spanning ecological studies have been conducted at this site, mainly encompassing the colour-banded fairy-wren populations and their brood parasites ( Feeney et al. 2018 ; Kennerley et al . 2019 ; Poje et al . 2019 ; Richardson et al . 2019 ; Hawkins et al . 2020 ; Carr et al . 2020 ; Boersma et al . 2023 ; Resendiz et al . 2024 ; Kessler et al . 2024 ; Corneliussen et al . 2025 ; Feeney et al. 2025). Observations White-winged Fairy-wren On 31 January 2017, JAK observed and photographed an ornamented male White-winged Fairy-wren at South Boulder WWTP carrying a piece of white material in the manner of a petal display ( Figure 1 ). Size, structure and reflectance of the petal-carried object suggested it was a piece of white soft plastic, such as from a single-use carrier bag, which were numerous littering the surrounding shrubs around this work site. Additionally, the absence of white flowers in the surrounding area supported the notion that the material was a fragment of soft plastic. This individual was the only ornamented male in a group of 12 individuals, the remainder were unsexed as they were in brown-type plumage. Multiple birds in the group were heard vocalising. Download figure Open in new tab Figure 1. Ornamented male White-winged Fairy-wren Malurus leucopterus carrying a large, white, plastic object on 31 January 2017 at South Boulder waste water treatment plant, Kalgoorlie-Boulder, Western Australia (Macaulay Library catalogue numbers, left: ML115465891, right: ML115465921). Photos by James A. Kennerley . Red-backed Fairy-wren During a targeted mist-netting effort involving playback for Red-backed Fairy-wren on 11 August 2025 a brown-phenotype bird, likely a female, was captured in the net. Approximately 30 seconds after, JB observed an unusually long and directional flight from a male M. melanocephalus into the net. Upon approaching the net JB noticed an orange object lying slightly above the captured individual within the same trammel line ( Figure 2 ) indicating that the male petal carried-carried into the net. Download figure Open in new tab Figure 2. Ornamented male Red-backed Fairy-wren Malurus melanocephalus with brown-type Red-backed Fairy-wren alongside petal carried material (A). Enlarged photograph of the coloured flagging tape carried into the net by the ornamented male fairy-wren (B). Ornamented male Red-backed Fairy-wren held in-plane with petal-carried object (C). Photos taken on 11 August 2025 at the Samsonvale study site. Photos by Jordan Boersma . JB noticed the larger size of the carried object compared to past field observations of petal-carrying behaviour. The material was stiff yet brittle, piecing apart easily after being extracted from the mistnet. Closer inspection revealed that the object was likely a piece of orange flagging tape used to mark a nest from a previous year. After processing and releasing both captured individuals, we searched to find older flagging tape for comparison. Upon examining flagging tape in the area from previous years, the colour, texture, and brittleness of orange flagging tape closely matched the object found with the individual in the net. Discussion Male fairy-wrens are widely documented to exhibit petal-carrying behaviour which can include carrying flowers, dried leaves, berries, grasses, or rarely insects ( Rowley 1991 ; Karubian and Alvarado 2003 ). We observed both a White-winged and Red-backed Fairy-wren apparently carrying plastic during petal displays on separate occasions. White-winged Fairy-wrens have previously been documented to carry petals in a wide range of hues from pink and yellow, to purple, blue, and white ( Rowley 1991 ; Birdlife Australia 2023b ), whereas Red-backeds are most frequently observed petal-carrying Lantana flower petals on the red-yellow colour spectrum ( Welklin 2020 ; Baldassarre et al . 2024 ). Our search for published material and media in the Macaulay Library ( macaulaylibrary.org ) found no previous documentation of any fairy-wren species using anthropogenic material for petal displays. Thus, to the best of our knowledge, the observations we report here of White-winged and Red-backed Fairy-wrens are the first evidence of anthropogenic material being used in a sexual display in the Malurus genus. Use of anthropogenic materials for an extended ornamented phenotype has been well documented in other species, such as bowerbirds. For instance, male Satin Bowerbirds Ptilonorhynchus violaceus commonly decorate their bowers with anthropogenically-derived blue items ( Wojcieszek et al . 2006 ; Lavers et al . 2025 ). Our observations are the first records outside of bowerbirds of a bird using an artificial material for a sexual display. Petal-carrying is known to be a primary mechanism for extra-pair copulation in Red-backed Fairy-wrens, which underlies fitness differences across male phenotypes ( Baldassarre et al . 2016 ; Dowling and Webster 2017 ), and is likely to operate in a similar fashion in other fairy-wren species. Continued work will determine whether flagging tape petals displays increase in frequency within the three fairy-wren species at our main study site at Lake Samsonvale as this is a readily available resource at our site and offers a larger colourful material than the plant material available at our site ( Appendix 1 ). Moreover, it is likely that other Malurus use anthropogenic materials, such as plastics, in petal displays given many species’ proximity to large human settlements but have been unrecognized or unreported. We hope that the ever-increasing use of participatory science platforms like eBird and iNaturalist ( inaturalist.org ) will allow us to better understand the frequency of these occurrences. Acknowledgements We are grateful to Seqwater for access to our Lake Samsonvale study site, and to everyone who submitted photographs of petal-carrying fairy-wrens to the Macaulay Library. Jordan Karubian, Anne Peters, and Joe Welklin, who have extensive experience observing petal-carrying behaviour in Malurids helped confirm the novelty of our observations. This study was conducted with approval by Cornell IACUC (2015-0065), the Queensland Department of Environmental Science (P-PTUKI-100283615) and Seqwater (NPD20250326). We were supported by Birds Queensland, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Doñana Biological Station, and the Wildlife Research and Education Institute. APPENDIX 1 Download figure Open in new tab Figure A1: Flagging tape typically used to mark nests of M. melanocephalus, M. lamberti, and M. cyaneus (A). Plant and fungal matter available for petal displays at Lake Samsonvale (Panels B-F). References ↵ Baldassarre DT , Greig EI , Webster MS . ( 2024 ). Red-backed Fairywren (Malurus melanocephalus), version 2.0 . Birds of the World . doi: 10.2173/bow.rebfai1.02 OpenUrl CrossRef ↵ Baldassarre DT , Greig EI , Webster MS ( 2016 ). The couple that sings together stays together: duetting, aggression and extra-pair paternity in a promiscuous bird species . Biology Letters 12 , 20151025 . doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2015.1025 OpenUrl CrossRef PubMed Marchant , S. et al. Birdlife Australia ( 2023a ). Red-backed Fairy-wren. In ‘Red-backed Fairy-wren . [Text before updates sourced from: Marchant , S. et al. 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