Key Points: * Researchers have revealed that in manakins, small birds inhabiting Central and South America, adaptation to a frugivorous diet preceded the evolution of flamboyant courtship behaviors and vibrant plumage. * It was discovered that manakins acquired the ability to sense the taste of sugars in fruits by repurposing their umami receptors. * The study suggests that changes in diet, accompanied by fundamental physiological shifts in taste perception and digestion, may have spurred subsequent evolutionary changes in behavior and reproductive strategies, ultimately leading to the creation of biodiversity. Abstract: A research team led by Associate Professor Yasuka Toda of the School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science (Science Tokyo), and Professor Yoshiro Ishimaru of the Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Meiji University, in collaboration with Dr. Maude Baldwin, Director at the Max Planck Institute, and Associate Professor Christopher Balakrishnan of the University of East Carolina, conducted an integrated study of genomic, functional, and evolutionary analyses on manakins, small birds found in Central and South America. Their findings reveal that adaptation to a frugivorous diet preceded the evolution of elaborate courtship behaviors and vibrant plumage. In manakins, only the males possess brightly colored plumage, exhibiting a marked sexual dimorphism compared to females. Furthermore, males display particularly complex and acrobatic courtship behaviors, including somersaults, aerial jumps, and rapid wing beats that produce sound. However, the evolutionary background of how these extreme and sophisticated behaviors originated has not been fully elucidated. The research group performed comparative genomic analysis of five manakin species and conducted population genomics and evolutionary analyses. They discovered positive selection acting on genes such as the taste receptor T1R (Term 1) and the digestive enz