Transcript:

LYREBIRDS MATINGHeres a program from our archives.In the classic play "Cyrano de Bergerac," a handsome but dull soldier named Christian falls in love with a beautiful woman, and resorts to borrowing the eloquent words of his friend Cyrano to entice his sweetheart. This week in Australia, a similar scenario is being enacted, but with one key difference. All the participants are birds. I'm Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet.It's breeding season for lyrebirds, and the male of the species has to go through one of the more elaborate courtship rituals in all of the bird world. First, he builds a platform out of a mound of dirt. And then, mounting his stage, the lyrebird lets out his mating call.ambience: LyrebirdThe thing is, this call isn't entirely the lyrebird's... He's actually mimicking here the song of a kookaburra bird. Lyrebirds borrow other bird's calls and use them to impress potential mates. Scientists think that the more varied a male lyrebird's vocal repertoire is, the more attractive he'll be to females. Some lyrebirds have been known to mimic barking dogs and even sounds made by human devices, such as alarm clocks, chain saws, and cracking whips.Along with his calls, the lyrebird relies on his physical beauty. He spreads his tail out over his head like a peacock. On either side, two unique feathers, long and thin, unfurl majestically, curling at the tips like a ribbon. The lyrebird poses, continuing his borrowed calls, and just like Christian in "Cyrano de Bergerac," hopes the whole display will be enough to entice a female into mating. I'm Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet.