Songbirds Tap Dance with Super Fast Moves to Woo Mates

High-speed cameras have caught a certain bird's speedy tap dance in action. While normally the songbird's dance is so fast that the fancy footwork is otherwise invisible, new efforts have shown the true extent of this amazing dance.

The bird in question is a small finch found in Africa. About three inches tall, the bird performs a spectacular dance in order to woo their potential mate, rattling through dance routines that feature head-bobbing, singing and tap dancing.

Scientists actually filmed the birds as they tried their luck with cage mates, and found that both males and females turned to tap to seduce their targets.

Non-singing birds are known to perform dances that can include noises from wing or tail feathers. In this case, though, researchers found that the bird's quick steps actually produce a tapping noise.

"The tap dancing is very fast and is completely invisible to the naked human eye," said Masayo Soma of Hokkaido University, in an interview with Discovery News. "Even a normal digital video camera cannot capture their motion, as the tapping is quicker than one frame."

The findings reveal a bit more about these unusual birds. More specifically, they show that these animals perform quick movements that are otherwise invisible to the naked eye.

Want to see it for yourself? Check out the video below, courtesy of YouTube.

Related Stories

The Bird Family Tree: New Research Reveals How Birds Evolved After Dinosaurs

Secrets of the Hummingbird Tongue Unlocked: How These Jeweled Birds Feed

For more great science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN).