Lek Mating - Lekking Species

Lekking Species

The term was originally used most commonly for Black Grouse (orrlek) and for Capercaillie (tjäderlek), and lekking behaviour is quite common in birds of this type, such as Sage Grouse, Prairie Chicken, and Sharp-tailed Grouse. However it is also shown by birds of other families, such as the Ruff, Great Snipe, Guianan Cock-of-the-rock, Musk Ducks, Hermit hummingbirds, Manakins, birds of paradise, Screaming Pihas and the Kakapo, by some mammals such as the Ugandan Kob (a waterbuck), several species of fruit bat and the topi, and by some species of fish and even insects like the midge and the Ghost Moth. The rut of deer is also very similar. There is some dispute among ethologists as to whether the lekking behaviour shown by animals of widely different groups should really be treated as the same, and in particular whether similar selective pressures have led to their emergence.

In a few species (peacocks and the black grouse), leks are composed of brothers and half-brothers. The lower-ranking males gain some fitness benefit by passing their genes on through attracting mates for their brothers (larger leks attract more females). Peacocks recognize and will lek with their brothers, even if they have never met before.