Digest: Light environments poorly explain hummingbird plumage colour

Light environments dictate how effective the colours that species adopt are for signalling or certain physiological functions, such as UV protection. Beltrán et al. (2026) show that light environments may, however, play only a marginal role in shaping variation in colour for hummingbird plumage, while sex and phylogeny are primary drivers of variation. These findings raise several questions about how hummingbirds overcome the demands of their light environment on their plumage colour and how colour evolves.