Natural History Wanderings

A new study from UC-Berkeley and Yale reveals how male hummingbirds attract mates. The researchers learned male hummingbirds create high frequency vibrations with their tail feathers when diving by females. It is believed that the females may be responding to the vibrations in choosing their mates.  You can read more at:
Science Now: Dive-Bombing Hummingbirds Let Their Feathers Do The Talking  
New York Times Male Hummingbirds Use Tail Feathers to Entice Mates

Watch a video, hear and see an explanation by lead researcher, Chris Clark,  and hear the sounds that some of the birds at You Tube:  Hummingbirds sing with their tail feathers

Two more related You Tube Videos:
Anna’s hummingbirds chirp with their tails (Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley have analysed the chirp made by male Anna’s hummingbirds as they swoop down towards a female.)
Most Amazing Hummingbird MATING Ritual – 600 FPS slow motion (male black chinned hummingbird doing a ritualistic “U” dive to impress a female in the tree. During this dive, the male hummingbird makes a whistling sound, not from his vocal cords but his tail feathers.)