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Olympus E-M1 MarkII
300mm f/4 IS Pro lens + 1.4x teleconverter handheld
1/3200 sec at f/6.3, auto ISO 200 or 250
The BNA description of the dance: "Typically, 2 birds of the same sex face one another on a branch with their bills held at a slightly upward angle (about 30° from horizontal). Each bird quickly swings its head back and forth and bobs it up and down, such that the bill appears to
trace a circular or Figure-8 pattern in the air. The swinging and bobbing give the appearance of a mechanically animated toy, and are usually accompanied by in-rhythm Wicka calls from both dancers. ... Intensity of the dances varies greatly: the dance of 2 birds (same sex) is likely to have relatively low intensity and may even be silent. Bursts of dancing and Wicka-calling might last 5–10 s, followed by a 30-s period of quiescence, followed by another burst of dancing where all participants seem compelled to join in. Bouts may last nearly half an hour (but usually are shorter) and may be joined and rejoined over a period of many hours. We have observed sustained series of dance bouts go on essentially all day, involving the same participants. Variation in the dance is substantial: the apparent context, number of participants, location, intensity, duration, whether the wings and tail are spread, whether Wicka calls accompanies animation, and pattern traced by bill can all vary. No data are available that demonstrate the range of variation or its meaning."
Photos of the end of a dance are shown below.
