Sex, in addition to being necessary for the existence of species, is an activity that releases numerous physical, mental and even emotional benefits. Despite moral criticism, scientists have investigated this practice in animals, plants and humans. The results have been varied and even surprising.
If we told the curious facts that everyone knows about the reproduction process, we would never finish. So, to add a little knowledge to that list, we share with you ten facts about the sexual lives of birds and bees.
Of the birds:
Most males do not have penises. About 97% of species do not develop that part of the reproductive system. According to one study, this phenomenon is due to cell called “apoptosis” (or “programmed cell death”). The reason? It is believed that females prefer the absence of a penis, since in this way “they are less able to approach females, leaving them the option of choosing the best option to reproduce.”
Birds are excited by a “cloacal kiss.” It is the method that birds use to reproduce, where both animals involved rub their respective cloacas (final opening of the digestive tract). The process is really brief.
The males put on a show to attract the females. They can show off their bright and colorful plumage, puff out their chest or become predominant; males only try to seduce their future sexual partner. We share the video of Cornell’s Birds-of-Paradise Project, which demonstrates this fact:
Ducks have corkscrew-shaped penises. Surprisingly, this shape adapts to the vaginal structure of females. According to scientific studies, this helps prevent sperm implantation when sex is not consensual.
Some females practice polyamory. Although 90% of birds tend to be monogamous, there are females that choose to be polygamous (have more than two sexual partners).
Penguins have a long incubation period. Females incubate an egg during the Antarctic winter (May or June), then go skating to look for food; Meanwhile, the males, without having eaten, incubate the eggs with their feet, for 65 to 75 days. So, when the mothers return, they regurgitate the food they collected throughout their absence to feed their young.
From the bees:
The young queen bees make a mating flight, when the drones are at the end of their lives. When the bees are beginning their reproduction process, one week they leave the hive to mate with a dozen drones; which stick their endophallus into the queen. Then, the male commits “sexual suicide,” since he dies once he inseminated the female.
Drones don’t have parents. There are three types of bees: the queen, worker bees (who are female), and drones (which are a small percentage of the hive). There are times when the queen bee lays unfertilized eggs, so they do not have parents.
Regicide is a fact of life for bees. When the fertility of the queen bee begins to fail, the worker bees kill the queen in a ball formation.
This is the drones penis.