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One of the factors which makes animal communication complex is the multimodality. Estrildid finches are one of the most studied songbird families for acoustic communication. They often combine their songs with body movements (i.e., dance) during courtship. However, there are still few empirical studies on the behavioral mechanisms and functions of dancing compared to songs. Our study species, blue-capped cordon-bleus (Uraeginthus cyanocephalus), perform characteristic dance displays in both sexes. During courtship, they repeatedly bob up and down and sing songs several times. We have previously found that they perform human tap-dance-like high-speed movements, tapping their legs on the perch two to six times in a single bobbing. Their behavior is interesting not only because both sexes perform almost the same display but also because their dance movements can produce non-vocal sounds and vibrations. Here we present our findings on the dance behavior and its relationship with songs in cordon-bleus. Our laboratory and field studies suggest that the sounds and vibrations by dancing can function as communication signals and have multifaced functions depending on the social and environmental contexts. It underscores the importance of considering the non-vocal aspects of bird acoustic communication toward a better understanding of animal communication systems and their complexities.
