Since natural selection fails to explain why males or females of some species have ostentatious bodily decorations, Darwin suggested that these traits can arise through sexual selection. But since Darwin’s time, new discoveries about animal mating and courtship continue to be made all the time.

For example, a new seven-year study in the April issue of the journal Animal Behaviour indicates that females in a feral population of Indian peafowl may not be as impressed by a male peacock’s huge train of feathers as was previously thought. Mariko Takahashi, author of the study, and a team of researchers expected to reinforce earlier findings that showed that peahens favored males with the highest number of eye spots in their feathers. However, after observing 268 peafowl matings, Takahashi’s team was able to find no single male trait that led females to choose a mate. These findings have led some biologists to believe that traits that are preferred in sexual selection may change over time, sort of like human fashions.

In a new miniseries, “What Females Want and Males Will Do,” premiering April 6 and 13, NATURE follows scientists around the world who are making amazing new discoveries about the complex nature of courtship throughout the animal kingdom. Employing cutting-edge technology, robotics, chemical analysis, special cameras, and even computer animation — “What Females Want and Males Will Do” is a sexual education that goes way beyond the birds and the bees.