Love comes in all shapes and sizes… but for certain residents of our animal kingdom — it may come in the form of scents, calls or trails beyond our human sensibilities! When it comes to finding a mate in the wild, animal gentlemen put out elaborate and often eccentric performances or tricks to woo their ladies. You may recall the sight of peacocks parading around with their dazzling feathers.
But beyond this obvious example are many others that display spectacular tactics of courtship. Welcome to the romantic world of animals, where love is communicated through signals such as whispers, glowing trails, and even tantalising scents!
The Silent Serenade
For the males in the animal world, a serenade composed to find the ‘one’ remains one of the most popular ways of letting the females know that they’re single and ready to mingle! Birds are melodious charmers and gracious dancers who often put up spectacular performances to impress their to-be-mates. However, unlike the cantabile notes of the avian species, there are other animals that have evolved to use ultrasonic or infrasonic calls that escape the radar of human hearing.
Elephants are gargantuan mammals that use infrasonic calls — sounds that are so low-pitched that they are imperceptible to us. These rumbling calls can travel several kilometres and are used by females in heat to communicate their state to bull elephants. The males use infrasound to convey that they are in the state of musth, a natural period of aggression, so that bull elephants around can keep their distance.
Chemicals of Attraction
In recent years, the term pheromones has garnered a great deal of attention within the human perfume market. Pheromones are chemical signals released by animals and humans alike, but the wild world is quick to pick them up as scents. Pheromones carry messages to indicate a potential mate’s readiness, but this fact is lesser known, making these chemicals the unsung heroes of animal courtship.
Female moths and the queen honeybee release strong pheromones that act like scented love letters for males that are far, far away. Besides mating, pheromones released by tiny insects and big cats are also crucial to their daily routine and behaviour.
Glow-in-the-Dark Love Signals
We cannot explain bioluminescence — the ability of beings to create their own light — without thinking about the deep sea dwellers that rely on this phenomenon. Certain fish emit an ethereal glow from their bodies to either attract prey or defend themselves against predators. But in the dark depths of the ocean that are untouched by sunlight, bioluminescence becomes a crucial tool for romance… or, with respect to the following example, a “bad romance” as Lady Gaga would call it!
Female anglerfish use a glowing lure to attract mates that eventually become her prey. The male anglerfish, significantly smaller in size, is drawn towards the female’s bioluminescent lure, mistaking it for a sign of companionship. Once he finds her, he bites onto her body — and never lets go. Over time, his tissues fuse with hers, and he becomes a permanent, parasitic mate, supplying sperm on demand while losing his independence entirely. It’s a haunting yet fascinating example of how, in the deep sea, light isn’t just a sign of life but also a trap.
Some land animals also use bioluminescence to find love under the cover of darkness. Fireflies light up summer nights with their flashing signals, with each species having its own unique rhythm. Males flash their lights in patterns to impress females, who respond with their own blinks if they are interested.
An Ultraviolet Romance
Have you seen the vibrant hues used in the movie Avatar and ever wondered how it would feel living in a land that’s thrumming with colour? Well, for some species, Mother Earth is that land! Some animals, especially birds, see the world very differently from us — they can perceive ultraviolet (UV) light, which paints the world around in colours and patterns invisible to human eyes.
Male butterflies often sport UV-reflective patterns on their wings, creating a dazzling display for potential mates. To us, they may appear plain, but to a butterfly, it may look like a beautiful, painted tapestry saying “I am the best, just look at my beautiful patterns!”. Not only that, certain birds, such as the European starling, have feathers that shimmer under UV light. Female birds use this hidden brilliance to assess the health and vitality of potential partners before singling out their partners!
The Subtle Impression
Just like mankind, a good chunk of other life forms inhabiting the planet earth are social beings in one way or another. But some of these beings interact in ways that are vastly different from the ones we humans are familiar with. While humankind associates romance with hand-holding or a gentle caress, many animals communicate affection through unique artistic cues.
The tiny Japanese pufferfish makes not-so-tiny intricate patterns on the ocean floor in order to attract mates. While that is a creative and non-vocal expression, a more subtle technique of courtship is carried out by male spiders that perform vibrational dances on a female’s web to signal their romantic interest. But here’s the real twist to the tale: if the vibrations impress the female, she can decide whether or not the male would become her next meal after the mating act. Talk about dying for love!
A Clandestine Affair
Sometimes, silence speaks volumes. This proverb probably originated from observing nature and how some species have evolved to court in the quietest, most discreet ways to avoid attracting predators or rivals.
The mating escapades displayed by some of these animals are as diverse and intriguing as the beings themselves. These hidden signals remind us that the natural world operates on frequencies far beyond human perception. The next time you see a firefly flicker, catch elephants flapping their ears, or watch a butterfly flutter past, remember — you might just be witnessing the language of love in its most unseen, yet deeply fascinating, form.
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[Photo (C) Wildlife SOS/ Hemanta Bijoy Chakma]
