Male C. senex have a kind of face mask, which the researchers say is used during courtship.
(Courtesy Marco Tschapka).
(CNN Spanish) -
In a conquest plan, they can hang themselves for hours and lift folds of skin on the chin, creating a mask effect on their face, to attract females.
This is how the male of the
Centurio senex
, a little known species of bat, initiates seduction until it reaches mating.
In a ritual that includes sounds to attract attention and start the romance.
In his appearance wrinkles are also distinguished on his face, very large and greenish eyes.
In addition, the nose different from that of other species and wings with some lines between the fingers.
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For the first time, a study led by biologists from the University of Costa Rica (UCR) describes the courtship of the male of this tropical species, whose body is smaller than the hand of an adult person.
According to Bernal Rodríguez, one of the researchers at the UCR, the ceremonial is completed by special sounds –– ultrasonic–– and a faster movement of their wings.
All with one goal: to seduce.
Get a partner!
Rodríguez explained to CNN that the
Centurio senex
applies a mating system called lek.
Which, he pointed out, has very rarely been documented in bats that live in their natural environment.
Therefore, it represents an important contribution to the study of the reproductive biology of these mammals.
The scientist added that females are different from males, which is known as sexual dimorphism.
A very noticeable aspect for those folds on the male's chin, which rise and fall when they are in the courtship ritual.
Male Centurio senex bats hang for hours with visual and acoustic displays to get mates.
(Courtesy Marco Tschapka).
According to a statement from the UCR Press Office, the term lek was first described in birds, although it is also present in insects and fish.
It refers to a specific place, called the arena, where the territorial males group together to make visual and acoustic displays to get a mate.
Those that perform better are more likely to be chosen by a female.
In this mating system, males only provide genetic material.
They do not take care of the offspring.
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The study was carried out in the rain forest of San Ramón de Alajuela, a province bordering San José, the capital of Costa Rica.
Scientists from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) also participated in the research;
from the University of Ulm, Germany;
from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, based in Panama, and from the José Miguel Alfaro Research Station, in Costa Rica.
The findings were published in a scientific article in the specialized journal
PLOS ONE
, on November 11.
In the report, Rodríguez affirms that "the study provides the first information on echolocation -system to locate by means of the echo of the sounds emitted by the bat- and the courtship of a rare and very interesting fruit bat."
Description of the bat's sexual encounter
Of 181 close-ups between males and females observed for the study, only on one occasion did the visiting female cling to the male and copulate.
Females of the Centurio senex species are different from males, they do not have the chin folds that males use in courtship.
(Courtesy Marco Tschapka).
That moment was described by Rodríguez and the rest of the scientific team in the article for PLOS ONE in the following way: «… We observed an approach to a perched male that ended with the usual sequence of whistles and the exit of the visitor.
Just five seconds later, the perched bat was visited again and this time the visitor landed immediately, very close and almost on the back of the perched male.
The visitor was a female, clearly recognizable by the lack of a face mask.
The male immediately lowered his mask and quickly moved into a face-to-face position with the female.
Five seconds later, he changed position, moved around the female, and pressed her face to the middle of her back, in a position typical of bat mating.
The male, who was visibly vibrating, was holding the female, using thumb claws and wings, and appeared to also bite the fur on the female's lower back, presumably while penetrating her. '
When referring to the sounds, Rodríguez details that at least four large groups were recognized in the different behaviors shown and that they consider them part of the announcement that males make to attract females.
According to the investigation, up to 56 males were observed perched for hours on tree branches, at an average height of 2.35 meters.
A wait that is prolonged with the expectation of attracting females and showing off in the courtship.
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