Lionesses generally prefer lions with thick, dark brown manes. This is because that mane color is associated with greater levels of testosterone and better genes, making them potentially better mates.
More odd facts about relationships in the animal kingdom:
- Male frigatebirds have large red sacs underneath their throats that they inflate to attract a mate. The female chooses the mate with the largest and shiniest sac. During the mating process, the male bird also covers the female's eyes with his wings so she won't get distracted.
- When it comes to Galapagos turtles choosing mates, the males rise on their legs and stretch their necks. Whichever turtle has the longer neck wins and gets the female.
- Bowerbirds are insatiable decorators. In order to impress females, male bowerbirds decorate their nests with a specific color scheme, and they get extremely agitated if the color scheme is disrupted. They even go so far as to trash other male bowerbirds' nests while they're out collecting more items.