Đợi sự cho phép của CDC

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Centurio senex is a wrinkle-faced bat found in Mexico, Central America, and northern South America. Interestingly, this species shows a distinct sexual dimorphism (hiện tượng lưỡng hình): Adult males have a fold of skin under the chin that can be raised to cover the lower part of the face like a mask (mặt nạ, khẩu trang), suggesting that it might be used during courtship (tán tỉnh) behavior. But this species has rarely been studied, so little is known about its behavior and natural history. In the new study, the researchers report the first observations of echolocation and mating behavior of C. senex. The authors analyzed synchronized audio and video recordings from an aggregation of males located on 53 perches in Costa Rica over a period of six weeks.

This species appears to use lek courtship, in which females choose mates from clusters of sexually displaying presumably territorial males. Among mammals, lek courtship is known to be used by only 12 species, mainly seals and hoofed mammals. When females approached, the perched males beat their wings and emitted very loud, low-frequency whistling calls. The males lowered their masks immediately before copulation (sự giao cấu, giao hợp), then sang enthusiastically and raised their masks again after mating.

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