6 animals whose sex life will seem familiar to humans
It is generally accepted that, with the exception of dolphins, some species of monkeys and humans, animals have sex under the influence of instinct - they find a mate only for the purpose of producing offspring. This is not entirely true: some species of animals also have sex for pleasure and sometimes in a very interesting way.
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1 Goats Have Lesbian Sex
Homosexuality is not uncommon in the animal world. But, as far as we know, males of only two species can become aroused by watching the sexual act of females: humans and goats.
Yes, goats love to watch lesbian acts of goats. In most cases, the goat gets so excited that it tries to join them as a third partner, unless, of course, the goats drive it away.
However, for goats, lesbian sex is not entirely common: rather, it is an extreme, when the goat does not show interest in mating - thus females attract him. In addition, a phenomenon called urolagnia may well appear - goats begin to urinate on each other in the hope that the goat will drink some of the urine.
By the way, it doesn't work otherwise: male goats don't copulate with each other in the hope of attracting a female.
2. Guppy fish use their ugly relatives to look more attractive themselves.
It's a common practice for people to go out in public with less attractive friends, not because you have to be friends with everyone, but because it makes us look more like supermodels. But the same trend is observed in guppy fish.
Female guppies prefer brightly colored males. This is understandable from the point of view of evolution: beautiful individuals are always perceived as the strongest and most prolific. Meanwhile, ugly males can only wait.
However, the researchers noticed that genes for non-colorful guppies are passed on just as often as for bright ones. Such males try to stay close to even less attractive males in order to look much better in comparison. The fact that guppies adopt this tactic is particularly interesting because it exemplifies a possible self-awareness that most animals do not have. The ugly guppy is aware of his unattractiveness, and as soon as he realizes this, he immediately goes in search of even uglier fish.
3. Tasmanian devils practice BDSM
Of course, there are many species of animals in which the male inflicts pain on the female during mating, or vice versa. But Tasmanian devils practice this behavior as a "love game" - the female pretends to be a victim, but the male almost never causes her serious injury.
Nevertheless, the female will not even consider the possibility of communication if the male does not prove his male viability. But instead of fighting for her with other males or hunting, he pounces on the female - scratches her, bites, beats or even throws her to the ground. The more he does this, the more she becomes ready to mate. If the behavior of the male does not satisfy her, they change roles, and in this case the female beats the male.
In fact, this is real sex. Foreplay with bites and scratches can last for more than an hour, and this is repeated over and over again for two days. After intercourse, the male simply falls asleep.
But the Tasmanian she-devil wants to make sure she has mated with the best male, so she leaves to find herself another. So she will do again and again until she is convinced of the correctness of her choice. The she-devil can bear up to four puppies, each of which will have completely different fathers.
4. Albatrosses date for years before mating
People, as you know, can meet with a partner they like for a very long time - this is one of the distinguishing human traits. But albatrosses behave in exactly the same way. And if some people think that two dates are enough, albatrosses are picky creatures: because they live so long, courtship can last for years.
The reason is that each albatross has a set of basic movements built into his head, and if he and a potential partner can make these movements together, then only then will they start creating offspring.
On average, the albatross dance takes several hours and can include complex sequences of movements: the birds bow, bounce, snap their beaks, and touch each other with their beaks. In some cases, a couple practices a joint dance for up to two years. This is surprising, but most often in the end, the female still lays the egg.
And, as is the case with many human couples, after the appearance of the chick, the dancing stops. His father and mother raise him together, but it seems that they have established themselves as excellent partners during the courtship stage.
5. Female weevils can let the male know how they like to mate.
Sex for animals is just a way to pass on their genes, but female weevils know a way to explain to their partner what they like - and explain.
The female centipede is able to store the sperm of several males at once in her body, but later she chooses the sperm of only one male to produce offspring. And she chooses on the basis of the pleasure received during sexual intercourse.
During mating, the male penetrates the female with the help of his pedipalps and begins to inject sperm through them. The pedipalp is an extra limb with a penis near the spider's mouth. The female responds by stroking the male's pedipalp with her own, and the result is a sound similar to the creaking of the skin.
This creaking serves to ensure that the male injects sperm into the female in the way she likes it - in fact, the female directs him. If everything suits her, then the seed will slip into her body, and there is a good chance that this particular spider will become the father of her cubs. If he does not listen to her, then she will reject him.
6. Black Vultures Hate Cheating
Nobody likes traitors - people are extremely negative about those who, behind their backs, break these promises. As for the black vultures, these birds also hate deceit and severely punish the "Don Juan".
Black vultures pair up for life and take monogamy extremely seriously: if a vulture tries to woo a busy female, the other vultures collectively beat him up. This is because the vulture chick needs constant care, which requires the constant attention of both parents. They incubate the egg in turn, changing every 24 hours, and in the first year of its life they feed the chick alternately. Thus, a young vulture, caring for a strange female, endangers the life of the chick.