Male Canary Brains Bathed In Testosterone Hit The Seductive High Notes

Male Canary Brains Bathed In Testosterone Hit The Seductive High Notes

Seducing a female canary isn’t easy. They are picky, frankly, looking for males particularly adept at singing “sexy syllables” that may indicate their overall genetic robustness. Researchers have previously determined that unlike most vocal notes produced by a male canary, the sexy trills require “extraordinarily fast and coordinated alternation between the left and right sides of the syrinx (the avian vocal organ) more than 16 times a second.

For the male canary capable of executing this performance — even on tape — caged female canaries assume postures inviting copulation.