[chorus of tropical bird chatter] [thrum of insects] 2
[distant birds squawking] 3
[narrator] A superb bird of paradise calls for a mate. 4
[high-pitched call] 5
The pursuit of love is his life's work. 6
[high-pitched call] 7
But looking good is only half the story. 8
[whimsical music] 9
To seal the deal, he must charm her with his dance. 10
[whimsical music continues] 11
When it comes to courting a partner, 12
this superb bird of paradise is not the only bird 13
with an extraordinary display. 14
But as we'll see, 15
in the world of dancing birds, 16
it's only the most charming that succeed. 17
[big band theme music] 18
[chorus of insects and bird chatter] 19
This is New Guinea, 20
the world's largest jungle-covered island. 21
In these isolated mountains and valleys, 22
birds have evolved 23
some of the most bizarre courtship displays on the planet. 24
[rapid trilling] 25
-Meet the King of Saxony. -[high-pitched trilling] 26
He has the longest head feathers of any bird. 27
And they're vital for impressing a female. 28
But first, the king must advertise for a queen. 29
[high-pitched vibrato] 30
He shares the canopy with hundreds of birds, 31
but is the right one, here for him? 32
Mm. That could be her. 33
Time to head down to his display vine. 34
She's definitely up there... 35
[screeching warble] 36
but he needs her closer. 37
And when she is, 38
he can begin his routine. 39
['60s big band music] 40
[high-pitched trill] 41
She will judge him on everything. 42
How high he swings. 43
The length of his head feathers. 44
And how he shakes them. 45
The higher he scores, 46
the more likely she'll choose him. 47
[leaves rustling] 48
It's decision time. 49
So, is he the king of the swings? 50
[music becomes less lively] 51
It seems not. 52
Oh, well, 53
back to the search. 54
[chorus of chirping] 55
Attracting the perfect partner 56
is a challenge for all male birds of paradise. 57
So some increase their chances 58
by having a permanent address. 59
[whimsical classical music] 60
An old, wobbly tree stump. 61
The top is just three meters off the forest floor. 62
It doesn't look much, 63
but it means everything 64
to this black sicklebill. 65
Or SB for short. 66
Every morning, SB comes here 67
in the hope of attracting a female. 68
[powerful chirrup] 69
And if he can't always be seen... 70
-[raucous chirruping] -he can be heard. 71
[chirruping] 72
[loud chirrup] 73
Even in the dense understory, his calls travel far. 74
[emphatic chirrup] 75
And, when it comes to first impressions, 76
he has a neat trick up his sleeve. 77
For years, no one knew why 78
the black sicklebill had these strange shoulder plumes. 79
But then, who could have imagined... this? 80
[warbling electronic sound] 81
[chirps] 82
[whimsical music] 83
With no shortage of food in these forests, 84
male birds of paradise can focus on one thing... 85
-attracting a mate. -[warbling electronic sound] 86
[rapid tapping] 87
[rapid tapping] 88
[rapid tapping] 89
His shiny badge of feathers is a sign that he's in tip-top condition. 90
He just needs a female to spot it. 91
[tapping continues] 92
[chirrups] 93
But, with no sign of any interest, 94
SB gets on with his day. 95
[chorus of exotic bird calls] 96
The sicklebill 97
is not the only pole-dancing bird in these forests. 98
The top of this 25-meter tree 99
has been fashioned into the perfect display post, 100
-by a twelve-wired bird of paradise. -[suggestive '60s music] 101
Let's call him... TW. 102
[powerfulcawing] 103
From up here, TW's call 104
is loud enough to carry to the other side of the valley. 105
Sadly, no one seems to be listening. 106
But if a female came by, 107
would she be impressed with these moves? 108
[lively big band music] 109
Or that tail? 110
Twelve-wires are the only birds in the world 111
with a tail like this, 112
and it's designed for a very odd kind of courtship. 113
[lively big band music continues] 114
He just needs a female on his pole. 115
[thrumming of insects] 116
SB's post has a visitor, 117
but it's a young male. 118
He's not having a bad feather day, 119
it's just his shoulder pads haven't developed yet. 120
And his shiny badge of feathers... 121
well, they wouldn't impress anyone. 122
But you're never too young to try out your moves. 123
[peculiar panpipe sound] 124
Pretty good, 125
even if he does look like he's been dragged 126
through the forest backwards. 127
[whimsical music] 128
TW's pole has a visitor, too, 129
but it's a metallic starling. 130
[metallic chirruping] 131
Keen to let others know he's in the area. 132
The pole is also a great vantage point for spying prey. 133
It seems that every bird in the forest 134
wants to sit on TW's post. 135
But if he's ever to attract a mate, 136
TW must drive off the stream of trespassers. 137
-[shrill caw] -[dramatic big band music] 138
Now, where are all those female twelve-wires? 139
[cawing loudly] 140
Surely there's one out there. 141
Scruffy is still at it. 142
[chirping and rapid tapping] 143
[ominous music] 144
And SB's not happy. 145
[tense music] 146
The kid's got guts 147
but he has to go. 148
SB knows that no pole means no dates. 149
Back in charge, 150
it's guns out... 151
hood up. 152
-All he needs is a passing female. -[warbling electronic sound] 153
Aha! 154
Could this be the one? 155
It is a female 156
but not a sicklebill. 157
Male birds of paradise can go their entire lives 158
without ever winning a female. 159
[rapid tapping] 160
But they're programmed to persevere. 161
[distant thunder rumbling] 162
An approaching storm is not good news. 163
SB knows there's no point dancing in the rain. 164
[thrum of torrential rain] 165
Female birds of paradise never look for partners 166
in bad weather. 167
Or almost never. 168
Here's a female that doesn't mind the rain. 169
TW can't have gone far. 170
But females have little patience. 171
[thunder rumbles] 172
Who knows when she'll be back. 173
[fanciful classical music] 174
TW spends a lot of time gardening and landscaping. 175
It's important work if he wants his display pole 176
to stand out in the canopy. 177
He's already removed all the leaves from here. 178
This lot could go, too. 179
But gardening must wait. 180
He has a date. 181
[apprehensive music] 182
So, will a leafy gift help to woo her? 183
[music crescendos] 184
No. 185
[music ends] 186
[insect buzzing] 187
For a male bird of paradise, 188
-life can often be frustrating. -[buzzing continues] 189
[buzzing stops] 190
[jaunty classical music] 191
But she hasn't given up on him yet. 192
He just needs to charm her onto his pole. 193
[jaunty music continues] 194
Strangely, 195
female twelve-wires like to be flicked across the face 196
by a male's tail. 197
[chirps loudly] 198
And she'll judge him on this. 199
So, here goes. 200
['40s swing music] 201
Unfortunately, his technique... is a turn-off. 202
The pole dancers spend a lot of time hoping they'll be noticed. 203
[warbling electronic sound] 204
But SB's wait could be over. 205
[wings fluttering] 206
That tweak is a good sign. 207
[fanciful music] 208
[rapid tapping] 209
But she needs a much closer inspection. 210
[rapid tapping] 211
The devil's in the detail. 212
-[rapid tapping] -[warbling electronic sound] 213
[fanciful music gathers momentum] 214
[rapid tapping] 215
He's passed the test. 216
[music approaches climax] 217
Perseverance has paid off. 218
Using a tree stump as a display post is one thing. 219
[cawing] 220
But for some dancing birds, 221
the females demand even more. 222
They expect their partners to get creative. 223
[chorus of buzzing insects] 224
[whimsical classical music] 225
This is a bower. 226
A stick bower. 227
It's built to attract a female bowerbird. 228
Though you could say it's the designer 229
that really catches the eye. 230
[romantic French music] 231
A flame bowerbird. 232
The world's most brightly colored bird. 233
He spent several days building his bower, 234
and now he's applying the finishing touches. 235
[romantic French music continues] 236
But Flame's is not the only kind of bower here. 237
This bower is probably the most ambitious construction 238
made by any single animal. 239
[whimsical music] 240
Here's the guy responsible. 241
MacGregor's bowerbird. 242
He may not have the sex appeal of Flame, 243
but no other bird goes to greater heights to impress the ladies. 244
[thrum of insects] 245
Unlike Flame, 246
MacGregor spends most of the year 247
tinkering with his bower. 248
[quirky classical music] 249
He works hard on making it bigger and better. 250
So far, it's been a seven-year labor of love. 251
Flame's bower, on the other hand, is short-lived, 252
likely to last just a couple of weeks. 253
Even so, every stick has its place. 254
And detail is everything. 255
[quirky music continues] 256
Happy with his bower, 257
Flame moves his attention to his backyard. 258
If he wants to impress a female, it's important to get this right, too. 259
For both, creating the perfect piece of art is time-consuming work. 260
And occasionally frustrating. 261
If only he had hands. 262
[music climaxes] 263
This isn't MacGregor. 264
It's his neighbor and rival from along the way. 265
With no one in, 266
he's come to cause trouble. 267
Bowerbirds can be very jealous. 268
But there's a point to this vandalism. 269
Sabotage your rival's bower... 270
and yours may look better to a visiting female. 271
Mister Flame is still having his own personal battles, 272
but he must also watch his back. 273
When you're the brightest thing in the jungle, 274
there's always a chance you'll attract the wrong kind of bird. 275
[ominous music] 276
A Doria's hawk. 277
But he's lost the element of surprise. 278
[metallic trill] 279
MacGregor is back. 280
And he gets on with the repairs. 281
His tower is well over a meter tall. 282
It may be a cliche, but size matters to female bowerbirds. 283
If a male can build and maintain a large tower, it's a sign of good genes. 284
Next, MacGregor turns his attention to the decor. 285
Every bowerbird works in his own medium. 286
For MacGregor, it's sticky plant sap. 287
Mm. Nice! 288
[insects chirping] 289
Flame is decorating, too, but he's more... 290
experimental. 291
MacGregor, however, knows just what he wants. 292
And everything has its place. 293
Now, this has potential. 294
But should it go here? 295
Here? 296
Or perhaps here? 297
Or even here? 298
Perfect. 299
Fresh decorations show that the bower is in use. 300
And the fancier it is, the more likely it'll impress a female. 301
He's hung hundreds of baubles already. 302
But apparently, there's a point 303
when there's just one too many. 304
In keeping with his brown color scheme, 305
MacGregor is hoping dead flowers will be an added attraction. 306
Decor is often down to local fashion. 307
In this valley, blue is the thing. 308
So will these berries catch the eye? 309
[snorting] 310
There's another unwelcome guest at MacGregor's. 311
[snuffling and snorting] 312
This could be bad. 313
But it's also an opportunity for MacGregor to practice an important skill. 314
[deep cawing] 315
Mimicry. 316
-[MacGregor mimics grunting] -[pig grunts] 317
[grunts] 318
Pretty impressive. 319
And how about his squealing pig? 320
[squeals] 321
He can also do... the local dogs. 322
-[shrill bark-like sound] -[pig grunts] 323
Pigs don't like dogs. 324
-[shrill bark-like sound] -[pig grumbles] 325
So, what will this pig think about a bark with more bite? 326
-[bark-like sound] -[pig stops grunting] 327
[barking continues] 328
-[pig snorting] -[barking continues] 329
There's more to this mimicry than scaring pigs. 330
It's also key to courting a partner. 331
[MacGregor calling] 332
[low raspy call] 333
He's in luck. 334
A female has heard him and drops in for a closer look. 335
[low call] 336
[bark-like sound] 337
Time for the blind audition. 338
[shrill chirrup] 339
[raspy call] 340
He must now give her his full repertoire. 341
[warbles, chirrups] 342
First up, the songs of forest birds. 343
[whistling melodically] [chirrups] 344
Moving on to other sounds he's picked up 345
from a nearby village. 346
[tapping sound] 347
Like chopping wood. 348
[tapping sound] 349
-[chatters in human-like voice] -People talking. 350
[human-like voices continue] 351
And, most remarkably... 352
[snatches of chatter] 353
children playing! 354
[fragmented child-like chatter and shouting] 355
She's impressed. 356
And who wouldn't be? 357
[fragmented chatter] 358
-A final dog bark... -[barks] 359
and it's on to stage two. 360
A game of hide and seek. 361
[jaunty music] 362
To keep her keen, he can't be seen. 363
[jaunty music continues] 364
This teasing game can go on for 20 minutes or more. 365
[jaunty music continues] 366
[metallic chirrup] 367
Flame is in luck, too. 368
A female flame has come to check him out. 369
[chirruping] 370
[chirruping] 371
She replies to his call, a good sign. 372
Now, how to coax her into his bower? 373
Will contracting and expanding his pupil be the right lure? 374
[metallic call] 375
She seems to like it. 376
[chirrups loudly] 377
One more step and she'll be in his bower. 378
[chirrups] 379
[chirrups] 380
Oh. Too much eye work, perhaps. 381
[chirrups] 382
Back at MacGregor's, it's time for the crazy thistle head. 383
[lively music] 384
[chirruping] 385
[lively music continues] 386
[chirruping] 387
She's seen enough... 388
[music fades] 389
but perhaps she'll be back later. 390
[metallic call] 391
The game's not yet up for Flame. 392
His date is back. 393
And he's trying something new. 394
He still needs to get her into his bower, 395
and a bit of blue beak bling 396
might be just the thing. 397
At last, she's right where he wants her. 398
[whimsical violin music] 399
Time for his signature dance: 400
the matador. 401
[clicking of castanets] 402
-[squawks] -Oh, dear! The pressure's getting to him. 403
[fanciful music continues] 404
Take two. 405
[castanets clicking] 406
[accordion and castanets play] 407
Everything seems to be going like clockwork. 408
[fanciful music continues] 409
His final move is odd. 410
But it's all part of the routine. 411
And this is his only contribution to fatherhood. 412
[music crescendos] 413
[shrill chirrup] 414
Bowerbirds play the mating game alone. 415
[chorus of exotic bird call] 416
But in the jungles of Central and South America, 417
there are some birds whose only hope of finding love 418
is teamwork. 419
This is a Guianan cock-of-the-rock. 420
-[loud crowing] -['70s funk music] 421
Every morning, a posse of males gathers in this patch of forest 422
in the hope of some female action. 423
[squawking] 424
[noisy crowing] 425
[loud shrill hoot] 426
[all hooting] 427
They're not exactly friends but they need one another to succeed. 428
['70s funk continues] 429
So, chaos must give way to order. 430
[shrill squawking] 431
This is a communal display ground, 432
or lek. 433
[hooting] 434
[squawking] 435
[fluttering and crowing] 436
At the lek, 437
every male has his own dancing area. 438
And the more males there are, 439
the more likely females will visit. 440
[music fades] 441
[thrum of tropical insects] 442
Teamwork is even more important for some performers in Panama. 443
This is the dancing perch 444
of a male lance-tailed manakin. 445
But to attract a female, 446
one manakin just won't cut it. 447
[rapid chirping] 448
So... he has a wingman. 449
[low rhythmic calling] 450
[jazz intro] 451
The manakins here are part of a 21-year study, 452
and this pair has worked together for five years. 453
[shrill twittering] 454
[jazz continues] 455
They're a well-oiled machine. 456
And the most successful duo in this forest. 457
[music ends] 458
Rehearsal over, 459
the pair go in search of a mate. 460
[melodic chirrups] 461
They advertise their readiness with a duet. 462
[melodic chirruping] 463
And their calls have been answered. 464
Now, they show her their stage with a round of flybys. 465
[jazz music starts up] 466
So far, so good. 467
But will their routine hit the mark? 468
[males chirrup rhythmically] 469
If it does, only the alpha will mate. 470
The wingman's only here 471
to make his boss look good. 472
[chirruping continues] 473
But, before deciding, 474
female manakins always check out the competition. 475
[music climaxes] 476
Oh, shame! 477
[rising squeaky call] 478
At the cock-of-the-rock lek, 479
the judges are taking their seats. 480
[chorus of crowing] 481
It's got the posse excited again. 482
[chorus of excitable squawking] 483
[psychedelic funk music] 484
Order restored, each takes his position. 485
And presents his best side. 486
[squawking] 487
[psychedelic music continues] 488
They'll be judged on their rear ends. 489
[Hammond organ plays] 490
It takes a trained eye to spot the prettiest bottom. 491
But there's more to the contest than that. 492
[high-pitched chirrups] 493
Wait for it... 494
Yeah, okay, it's not exactly Swan Lake, 495
but it's enough to make the final choice easier. 496
[Hammond organ plays] 497
But is this male as impressive... up close? 498
He must keep hopping until he gets the okay. 499
[squawking] 500
Not everyone's best pleased about that. 501
But the competition isn't over yet. 502
There are still other females to win over, 503
so they must keep hopping. 504
[psychedelic music continues] 505
But when the next female chooses... 506
[Hammond organ] 507
it's the same guy! 508
Research has shown that most matings 509
at a lek are with one male. 510
[multiple squawks] 511
[hoots] 512
But only the females know 513
what he has that the others don't. 514
Still, until the last female's gone, there's always hope. 515
[music fades out] 516
The manakin A-team are hopeful, too. 517
The female's back. 518
[excitable warbling] 519
And the duo picks up where they left off. 520
[lively big band music] 521
[chirruping and hooting] 522
But the final act... is a solo. 523
[lively music continues] 524
So, when it's time to go it alone, 525
the alpha calls at his wingman to leave. 526
[whistles] 527
Last year, this male was the most successful in the study. 528
But he can't afford to relax. 529
Research has shown that older females, like this one, 530
make experienced males work harder for their affections. 531
So he must dazzle her with each of his dance moves. 532
Now comes the highlight of the whole performance. 533
Cue drumroll... 534
[drumroll] 535
[lively music continues] 536
The perch bounces. 537
She likes them! 538
All that's left is to bow... 539
and mate. 540
The wingman can only look on. 541
Perhaps next year, he'll be on top. 542
[music crescendos] 543
[music climaxes] 544
Back in New Guinea, 545
there's one dancing bird that has it all... 546
[chorus of chirruping] 547
the perfect arena, 548
the most varied dance routine, 549
and he does it all by himself. 550
You could say... he's the greatest showman. 551
This is his personal display court. 552
He's a bird of paradise, 553
-[high-pitched squawk] -a Carola's parotia, 554
and his name's Bob. 555
Bob is obsessed with tidiness. 556
But it's vital housework. 557
Female Carolas don't visit messy display courts. 558
[pinging] 559
Every leaf must go. 560
Perfect. 561
But Bob's jobs are not done. 562
There's other groundwork to do. 563
His arena is carpeted with moss. 564
And there are a few areas to attend to. 565
Splendid! 566
Chores finished, Bob limbers up. 567
Carolas spend more time rehearsing their displays 568
than any other bird of paradise. 569
[whimsical music] 570
The ballerina is just one of nine carefully choreographed moves. 571
And each will have to be done in exactly the right order, 572
making it the most complex dance of any bird. 573
Even the pauses between moves are important to the routine. 574
And it's not just what he does but where. 575
Dancing under his perch is crucial, 576
as it's from here a female will view his performance. 577
But even the most serious dancer can tire of practicing. 578
Particularly when no one's even watching. 579
[raspy call] 580
-So, it's off to lunch. -[chirrups] 581
With Bob gone, 582
others slide in. 583
[chirrups shrilly] 584
A juvenile male 585
and his equally juvenile male friend. 586
[warbling] 587
One day, they'll both have their own courts 588
but until then, they must seize every chance to practice. 589
[metallic raspy call] 590
With two, they can role-play. 591
A dancer... 592
and a judging female. 593
But time's up. 594
[Bob squawks] 595
Bob's back. 596
This youngster wants to stick around 597
and learn from an expert. 598
But playtime is over. 599
[romantic music] 600
And not a moment too soon. 601
A female Carola. 602
But she's not looking for love. 603
She's after nest material. 604
Best get rid of her. 605
[raspy chirrup] 606
When you're a Carola's parotia, 607
there's no such thing as downtime. 608
To succeed, Bob knows his routine must be faultless. 609
So it's practice, practice, practice. 610
Aha! Another female! 611
[chirps] 612
This one seems interested in him, 613
so it's showtime. 614
[whimsical music] 615
Bob opens with a perch pivot, 616
the first of his nine moves. 617
[raspy chirrup] 618
With the female getting closer, it's time for move two. 619
The court hops. 620
Then smartly onto move three, 621
the swaying bounce. 622
The mossy carpet helps keep Bob's feet firmly on the ground. 623
But he needs her on his perch. 624
Yes! 625
But what's this? 626
A plus-one? 627
-[squawks shrilly] -It's another adult male. 628
He could prove trouble but Bob must press on. 629
A Carola display could last hours. 630
And there are points for stamina. 631
[raspy trilling] 632
The arrival of a second male is more worrying. 633
[squawks excitedly] 634
Suddenly, Bob's surrounded by rivals, 635
here to break up his date. 636
If he loses focus now, she may visit one of their courts instead. 637
[males squawking excitedly] 638
And he's still got a lot to get through. 639
Next, move four. 640
The head tilts. 641
[raucous chorus of squawking males] 642
But all that noise is just too distracting. 643
[cacophony of squawking] 644
He must show them who's boss. 645
And this bit of leaf could be the answer. 646
It's a badge of ownership, a Carola's way of saying: 647
"This is my court. Get lost." 648
[squawking fades] 649
It's odd... 650
but it works. 651
But now, something's wrong. 652
Has she lost interest, 653
or is he trying to woo her at the wrong end of the perch? 654
Fortunately, 655
Bob's remembered that female Carolas 656
like to look down on their would-be partners. 657
So it's back to business, and the second round of court hops. 658
Move five. 659
Now on to the next move: 660
the hop and shake. 661
Number six, 662
where he'll fluff his feathers, shuffle forward, 663
and stick his head under his wing. 664
Fluff, shuffle, wing. 665
Fluff... 666
shuffle... 667
wing. 668
Still looking good above. 669
So it's time for moves seven, eight and nine. 670
The bow, ballerina and head bobs, 671
the moves that mark him out as surely the finest dancer of them all. 672
Take it away, Bob! 673
[T. Rex "Cosmic Dancer" playing] 674
♪ I was dancing when I was twelve ♪ 675
♪ I was dancing when I was twelve ♪ 676
♪ I was dancing when I was out ♪ 677
♪ I was dancing when I was out ♪ 678
[Bob squawks] 679
♪ I danced myself out of the womb ♪ 680
♪ I danced myself out of the womb ♪ 681
Some male Carolas never win the female... 682
♪ Is it strange to dance that soon? ♪ 683
but Bob's chances are looking good. 684
♪ I danced myself out of the womb ♪ 685
♪ Ohh ♪ 686
♪ Ohh-oh-ohh ♪ 687
♪ I was dancing when I was eight ♪ 688
♪ I was dancing when I was eight ♪ 689
Even the pauses are holding her interest. 690
♪ Is it strange to dance so late? ♪ 691
♪ Is it strange to dance so late? ♪ 692
♪ Ohh ♪ 693
♪ Ohh-oh-ohh♪ 694
[instrumental continues] 695
Fluttering wings are her way of saying: 696
"Nice job, Bob." 697
[music continues] 698
It's the sign he's been hoping for. 699
[Bob squawks] 700
Hurrah! 701
-But despite Bob's virtuoso performance... -[squawks] 702
she may never want to see him again. 703
Oh, well. 704
[big band theme music plays]