Watch these manakins displaying! and copulating! Now… how on earth do those males DO that? What happens during that last incredible dive from above the canopy? How do they make those sounds?
In a current collaboration with Lainy Day, we used high-speed videography to answer these questions! We captured multiple displays of several males of varying ages and attractiveness to females. We think we know how the sounds are made now, and are on a quest to determine what makes a good display. This work builds upon interest in the White-ruffed Manakin breeding system which is characterized by remarkable variability in every aspect we’ve studied.