To avoid danger, animals often do their best to keep out of sight. During breeding season, however, they need to draw attention to themselves so they can attract a mate. Some animals do this by calling or singing or even changing color. Here is a list of interesting facts about animals and birds and their mating behavior.

A male fiddler crab waves one giant, colorful claw. This claw is as long as the fiddler crab’s body. When the male waves, female crab comes scuttling across the mud.

Male bowerbirds have amazing building skills. To attract females, each male collects hundreds of small sticks and make a structure called a bower. The male then decorates the bower with bright objects, and waits for his work to catch a female’s eyes. Satin bowerbirds, from Australia, alway use blue in their color scheme. The male collects blue flowers, blue feathers, and even blue bottle tops to spread out on the ground.

Apoils lizards attract females by lowering a throat flap, which looks like a brightly colored flag.

Male and female frigate birds look almost identical as they circle high above the sea. But during the breeding season, the males have a startling way of catching a female’s eye. Perched in a bush near the water’s edge, they puff up a throat pouch that look like a bright red balloon. Each male keeps his pouch inflated until he has successfully attracted a mate.