Undergrad Why Does Light Reflect Differently on Leaves in Certain Areas?

[pixel]

I was walking outside this morning and saw an interesting color effect in the ground cover. Parts of some leaves were illuminated by the sun and looked as expected (left side of image) but when I walked a bit further down and looked back the illuminated areas appeared pinkish (right side of image). The effect only showed up in one small area of the ground cover that was in the shade of a nearby bush. How to explain?

Note that there wasn't a series of colors as you would expect from thin film interference or some type of diffraction effect. The leaves appeared white from one direction and pink from another.

 

[A.T.]

http://www.phikwadraat.nl/specular_colors/

or:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structural_coloration

 

[pixel]

You showed me the first link in my previous color effect post (about black sharpie pen ink reflecting orange). But if that is the explanation here, then why was the effect limited to a small area of ground cover when many other leaves were being illuminated and viewed at similar angles?

 

[A.T.]

why was the effect limited to a small area of ground cover

Biology is complex. Without further experiments impossible to say more. Maybe an animal peed on those particular leaves or whatever.