This fruit attracts birds with an unusual way of making itself metallic blue

Date 6th, Aug 2020
Source ScienceDaily - General News Websites

DESCRIPTION

Instead of relying solely on pigments, the metallic blue fruits of Viburnum tinus use structural color to reflect blue light, a mechanism rarely seen in plants. Researchers show that the fruits use lipid nanostructures in their cell walls, a previously unknown mechanism of structural color, to get their striking blue -- which may also double as a signal to birds that the fruits are full of nutritious fats.