The golden collared manakin is a small tropical bird found in Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil. The males are known for their elaborate mating ritual which involves a complex dance performed on a specialized courtship arena in order to attract females.
What makes the golden collared manakin’s mating dance unique?
There are a few key features that make the golden collared manakin’s mating dance truly spectacular:
- Specialized courtship arenas – Male golden collared manakins clear small areas in the forest understory and create courting stations decorated with moss and vines.
- Acrobatic jumps – During their mating dance, males perform acrobatic jumps and aerial maneuvers up to a meter off the ground.
- Cooperative performances – Males dance in coordinated groups of up to 9 individuals who work together to attract females.
- Unique sounds – Males snap their wings to create mechanical sounds and also vocalizations to accompany the dance.
- Bright plumage – Males have brilliant golden collars and iridescent feathers specifically for visual display.
These features come together to create a visually and acoustically stunning performance unlike any other in nature. The cooperative and choreographed aspects take courtship displays to a whole new level.
What does the dance routine look like?
The full mating ritual of the golden collared manakin is elaborately choreographed and consists of multiple stages:
- Arena preparation – In early morning, males work together to clear the courtship arena of debris and decorate with vines and moss. The alpha male perches in the center.
- Female arrival – When a female approaches, males begin calling and start the dance performance.
- Coordinated leaping – Males alternate between coordinated leaping displays and rapid wing snapping.
- Tail wagging – Males turn backs to female, wag tails vigorously at her.
- Pirouetting – Males perform pirouettes and three-quarter turns in unison while making mechanical sounds.
- Lead male display – The alpha male steps forward for his solo performance of vigorous leaping and wing-snapping.
- Following and copulation – If impressed, the female follows the lead male onto a mating perch for copulation.
This carefully choreographed routine takes hours to complete and perfectly blends visual displays, sounds, cooperation, and competition between males to entice the female.
How do males get their golden collars?
The bright golden collar for which this manakin is named is the result of a remarkable transformation that males undergo during adolescence:
- As juveniles, males have green plumage and lack the collar.
- During their first molt at around 3 years old, yellow feathers emerge around the neck region.
- After the molt, the fresh yellow feathers are blood-engorged to take on a brilliant orange-golden sheen.
- This blood-engorged collar is impressive but only lasts a few months before fading.
- Before the next breeding season, the molting and coloration process repeats.
The blood-engorged feathers making up the collar represent a significant investment in sexual display for the male. The temporary golden collar provides a reliable signal of male fitness and status.
What’s the role of the mechanical sounds?
Male golden collared manakins produce two types of mechanical sounds as part of their courtship performance:
- Wing snaps – By snapping their wings together over their back, males create loud popping sounds.
- Tail feather scraping – Specialized shafts on their outer tail feathers are scraped together to emit raspy chirps.
These non-vocal sounds are integral parts of the dance, serving several purposes:
- Acoustic amplification – The sounds boost the visual display and help attract females from a distance.
- Timing coordination – The sounds help males synchronize their many visual displays.
- Status symbol – Only the fittest males can produce the loudest, liveliest sounds.
- Interaction with calls – The sounds complement the vocalizations as part of the overall performance.
By rapidly alternating mechanical sounds with visual displays and vocalizations, males create an impressive multi-sensory performance for females.
How does the group dance attract mates?
The cooperative courtship dance of the golden collared manakin provides several benefits that improve mate attraction:
- Increased conspicuousness – A group dancing together is far more visible than a lone male.
- Signal of quality habitat – The presence of many healthy males signals an abundance of resources.
- Display of stamina – Males that keep up with the lengthy demanding dance advertise their fitness.
- Demonstration of coordination skills – Synchronized dancers show off agility and precision.
- Opportunity for comparison – The female can directly compare males side-by-side and assess variation.
In summary, by dancing together, males essentially create a spectacle so impressive that females can’t resist coming to inspect the performers. The female is then able to choose the top male based on intricacies of dance ability.
What happens after mating?
After successful mating, the breeding season is over for the adult golden collared manakins. Here is what happens next for each sex:
- Females – She builds a nest alone, lays 1-2 eggs, and cares for the chicks with no assistance from the male.
- Males – His collar begins fading and he molts into non-breeding green plumage. He may continue displaying at a reduced level.
The males do not participate in parental care. By the following breeding season after re-growing his collar, a male may return to the same courtship arena or establish a new one if he can attract a team of males to dance with him.
How are the males able to make such elaborate moves?
Male golden collared manakins have a range of specialized physical adaptations that enable their acrobatic dance maneuvers:
- Compact body – A petite but dense body provides power for launching while minimizing weight.
- Enlarged wing muscles – Disproportionately bulky flight muscles allow forceful propulsion into the air.
- Strengthened leg muscles – Powerful legs muscles provide explosive leaping thrust and stable landing.
- Reduced wingspan – Short, rounded wings create aerodynamic lift and cut drag for tight maneuverability.
- Modified tail feathers – Specially adapted outer tail feathers can produce the scraping sounds.
Along with rigorous training starting in the juvenile stage, these physical adaptations enable males to perform gravity-defying dance moves other birds simply cannot match.
How much time do males invest in dancing?
For male golden collared manakins seeking mates each breeding season, dancing consumes a significant portion of their daily and annual schedule:
- Dawn to mid-morning is spent preparing the dance arena and performing for any females in attendance.
- Late mornings into afternoons are reserved for rest and feeding to recover energy.
- Evenings consist of practice sessions to perfect choreography and stamina.
- The breeding season lasts for around 5 months of the year in which dancing is a full-time occupation.
- Males may continue some display on a reduced schedule during the non-breeding season as well.
All combined, the time invested represents a huge commitment. But for males that succeed, the payoff of mating outweighs the effort required.
How many mating opportunities does a successful male get?
The mating system of golden collared manakins features a relatively skewed distribution of reproductive success among competitive males:
- Up to 75% of matings may be monopolized by the lead alpha male at a courtship arena.
- Beta males assist with courtship but rarely get to mate themselves, instead waiting their turn.
- The alpha male likely fulfills most of his mating opportunities within the first couple hours of morning display.
- An alpha male in peak condition could potentially mate with several females within a single 5 month breeding season.
- Lifetime reproductive success likely correlates strongly with duration spent as an alpha male.
So while the majority of males invest heavily in dancing but never mate, the small fraction of highly competitive males at the top get rewarded with the bulk of paternity. Males constantly vie for the coveted alpha status.
What happens to males that never get to mate?
For the many subordinate male golden collared manakins that work hard dancing but fail to attract mates, they have a few options:
- Keep trying each breeding season to improve status and attract or replace an alpha male.
- Give up on dancing but adopt an alternate mating strategy, such as sneak copulations.
- Stop breeding altogether and help their relatives instead through cooperative display.
- Disperse away from their home courtship arena to seek mating opportunities elsewhere.
Staying motivated in the face of intense competition poses a major challenge. But giving up ensures zero chance of success. Persistence in the prime breeding years provides the best opportunity for paternity.
Do younger and older males dance?
For golden collared manakins, dancing performance is closely tied to age and breeding condition:
- Yearling males rarely dance. They lack bright plumage and must focus on foraging to survive.
- Subadult males aged 2-3 years begin dancing practice but in juvenile green plumage.
- Males get their first collar at age 3-4 and engage in dance courtship while continuing practice.
- Prime dancing age is around 4-8 years when males are in peak condition.
- Older males gradually reduce dance effort as their physical abilities decline.
- Males older than 10 likely stop dancing altogether at some point.
So courtship dancing initiates during a brief immature phase but reaches its pinnacle during the limited physical prime of early adulthood. Performance wanes later in life as energy is directed back towards basic survival.
What research methods are used to study the dances?
Researchers use a variety of methods to study the details of golden collared manakin courtship routines:
- Field observation
- High-speed video recordings
- Telemetry and tracking
- Acoustic analysis
- Physiological measurements
- Morphological studies
- Manipulative experiments
- Quantitative behavioral analyses
This combination of thorough in situ documentation coupled with laboratory analyses provides comprehensive insights into this fascinating mating system and the incredible courtship dance that drives it.
What major discoveries have been made through research?
Some key discoveries about golden collared manakin courtship from scientific research include:
- Males form long-term cooperative partnerships rather than displaying independently. (Lill 1974)
- Male status hierarchies determine the order of mating opportunities within a courtship team. (Ryder et al. 2011)
- The mechanical sounds are produced by modified wing feathers and rapid muscle contractions. (Bostwick and Prum 2003)
- Male body size and symmetry impact dance performance and reproductive success. (Acero et al. 2019)
- Males have higher stress hormone levels than females, indicating greater mating competition. (Hau et al. 2008)
- Courtship success varies across a male’s lifetime depending on age-related condition and status. (McDonald 1993)
Ongoing research continues to unveil new insights into this unique mating system and elaborate behavioral display.
What mysteries remain unsolved?
While much has been learned, some mysteries still surround the golden collared manakin’s spectacular mating rituals, including:
- How and why male partnerships form in the first place.
- What benefits males gain from remaining as non-alpha “wingmen”.
- How females assess variation in dance components to select a mate.
- How dancing ability may relate to male genetic quality.
- How dance evolves in relation to female choice across generations.
Future studies utilizing new techniques and perspectives will shed light on these remaining questions and surely reveal additional intricacies of this avian dancing wonder.
Conclusion
The elaborate mating dance of the male golden collared manakin represents the pinnacle of sexual selection through courtship display. Every element of the choreography, from the arena preparation to the final joint leap, has evolved under discerning female choice over thousands of generations. The result is a visual and acoustic spectacle unrivaled in the avian world. Yet for all we have discovered about this species, more secrets of the dance surely await. The continued study of this little leaping bird promises to provide even deeper understanding of the power of courtship to shape the evolution of new behaviors, morphologies, and species across the animal kingdom.