«In females, selection seems to have favoured better camouflage to avoid attack from avian predators. (sciencedaily.com)
They found that avian predators did indeed pick off a lot of beetles: in the rainy season — peak time for beetle activity — borer infestation almost doubled when birds were excluded from foraging on coffee shrubs, rising from 4.6 % to 8.5 %. (scientificamerican.com)
Avian predators most probably procured the much rarer squirrels and gerbils from drier scrub or arid settings at a distance. (science.sciencemag.org)