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Cock of the Rock
The Guianan Cock-of-the-Rock Rupicola rupicola is a striking passerine, most noticeable for its prominent half-moon crest. This species demonstrates extreme sexual dimorphism; females are a dull brown in colour but males are vivid orange.
Males and females live separately, but when the breeding season arrives these birds display a complex behaviour known as the lek. During the lek, males aggregate to perform elaborate courtship rituals in an effort to attract a mate. These rituals include calls, bill snapping and displays of their magnificent crests. The spectacle is conducted in cleared areas or ‘courts’ with adjacent perches, which males will vigorously defend from others. After the lek, when females have made their selection, the males are not involved in nest building or chick rearing. Lekking is common throughout the animal kingdom, for example in grouse and in fallow deer during the rut.