When courting a female, peacocks fan their colorful rear feathers and shake them, but somehow keep their plumes' iridescent circles, or eyespots, nearly still, like a fixed stare. It's a trick that is known to work with the ladies—who are known as peahens—researchers said Wednesday. Charles Darwin first noted this chase-and-dance behavior a century and a half ago, but researchers have never fully understood how the biomechanics work. So a team led by Roslyn Dakin from the University of British Columbia, Canada, studied the mating dance, in which the male shakes dozens of train feathers—each up to 1.
They used high-speed video to analyze the train-rattling movements in 14 adult peacocks. They found that peacocks' eyespots can stay so still during displays because they "are locked together with microhooks much like those on flight feathers," said the study. Researchers also found that the longer a male's tail feathers , the faster he was able to shake them. This effort would require more muscular strength, and might be a powerful signal of fitness to the females.
Most train feathers have a single eyespot at the end, and previous research has shown that "peacocks that display eyespots with greater iridescence obtain more matings. Explore further. More from Biology and Medical. Use this form if you have come across a typo, inaccuracy or would like to send an edit request for the content on this page. For general inquiries, please use our contact form. For general feedback, use the public comments section below please adhere to guidelines.
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Science News. ScienceDaily, 27 April Peacock tail feathers shake at resonance and hold eyespots still during courtship displays: Dynamic feather vibrations enhance male peacocks display for female viewers.
Retrieved November 11, from www. When human-made noise pollution was present, the females didn't In a new study, scientists have shown that diving males closely time key events to produce a burst of By comparing the shapes of those feather ScienceDaily shares links with sites in the TrendMD network and earns revenue from third-party advertisers, where indicated.
Print Email Share. Charles Darwin first noted this chase-and-dance behaviour a century and a half ago, but researchers have never fully understood how the biomechanics work. So the team, led by Dr Roslyn Dakin from the University of British Columbia, Canada, studied the mating dance, in which the male shakes dozens of train feathers — each up to 1. They used high-speed video to analyse the train-rattling movements in 14 adult peacocks.
They found the feathers vibrated on average around 25 beats per second, generating a pulsating low-frequency sound that is hard for humans to hear, but in the perfect range for peahens. Previous research has also shown peacocks that display eyespots with greater iridescence are more successful at wooing the ladies. The researchers found that rapid shaking of the peacock's tail feathers created a dynamic iridescence around the eyespot. Using scanning electron microscopy the researchers found the eyespots stay so still during displays because they are locked together with microhooks much like those on flight feathers.
This gives each eyespot greater density than the surrounding loose barbs, keeping it essentially in place as the loose barbs shimmer in the background, the researchers said. The researchers also found that the longer a male's tail feathers, the faster he was able to shake them. This effort would require more muscular strength, and might be a powerful signal of fitness to the females. The researchers said their study countered Darwin's view the peacock's dance served "merely to make noise".
We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work. Key points: Peacock tail feathers beat on average 25 times a second, creating low-frequency sound Rapid movement creates luminescence around eyespot on tail feather Eyespots are locked together with microhooks so they stay still.
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