Biology

Can the plumage ornament of a peacock really give it a higher chance to be a peahens choice of mate Not at all, says a seven-year research in Japan where scientists scrutinized the mating success of peacocks and the courtship behaviors of their female counterparts towards them vis--vis their morphology, the distinct train they have which people had long believed to be a basis for strong sexual selection.

Comparing the number of eyes in the male birds train with the chance to engage in capitulation with the female birds, researchers monitored with the help of a surveillance system  the mating behavior and activities of a hundred of birds, predominantly male, mixed with thousand others of unchanging characteristics. This method tests their hypothesis whether or not the female will strongly select the bird with more eyes in their train as mates. They further estimated  the measure of success of mating by observing the females courtship behaviors, like soliciting or receiving the males display of their trains.

After applying a series of acceptable statistics, researchers quantified their observations and  come to conclude that there is no correlation between a peacocks train and the chance of being selected as mate especially so that there is no significant variance of the train among males. Instead, as an offshoot of the research, they have found out that what likely triggers successful mating is the females behaviors during courtship.

These results validate earlier research results that the birds choice of mates doesnt depend on the morphology of the prospect partners. As for the peahen, she actively takes control of her choice, not based on the partners physical appearance but, perhaps, on the emotions and cues coming from and towards the partner. Hence, looks doesnt matter.