Matutinal

[6] It may also serve as an anti-predator adaptation by allowing animals to sit between the brink of danger that may come with diurnal and nocturnal activity.

[8] Selection pressures, such as high predatory activity or low food may require animals to change their behaviours to adapt.

An animal changing the time of day at which it carries out significant tasks (e.g., mating and/or foraging) is recognized as one of these adaptive behaviours.

For example, human activity, which is more predominant during daylight hours, has forced certain species (most often larger mammals) living in urban areas to shift their schedules to crepuscular ones.

[4][9][10] Animals are generally more vulnerable during copulation (e.g., praying mantis), so mating during a time when there is less predatory activity may be an anti-predatory adaptation.

[3][11] For species that copulate for longer periods, shifting their mating schedule may additionally allow enough time for the male to completely inseminate the female (i.e., it will reduce the chance of having to escape from a predator mid-copulation).

Likely to compensate for this vulnerability, females will initiate this stance only at first light when diurnal predators that are visual hunters are less active (e.g., birds and insectivorous primates).

For example, female superb fairywrens (Malurus cyaneus), are a monogamous bird that perform extra-pair copulations during matutinal hours.

A similar phenomenon is seen in male praying mantises, where they respond to the emerging light each morning by increasing flight activity.