Birds categorize colors just like humans do

Zebra finches perceive only red or orange, even when the truth falls somewhere in between

Date:  August 1, 2018

Source:  Duke University

Summary:

For a reddish-beaked bird called the zebra finch, sexiness is color-coded. Males have beaks that range from light orange to dark red. But to females, a male's colored bill may simply be hot, or not, findings suggest. Due to a phenomenon called categorical perception, zebra finches partition the range of hues from red to orange into two discrete categories, much like humans do, researchers report.

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