From the Huffiington Post:
Bruchid Beetle's Penis: 'Terrifying' Organ Useful For Sexual Selection, Scientists Say
Male bruchid beetles, also known as cowpea weevils, have spines on their penises that puncture the female reproductive tract during mating, causing significant internal damage to females.
According to an article in the journal Behavioral Ecology, the sex is
so unpleasant that the females are known to kick their mates off them
to make the deed as quick as possible.
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| The penis of a Callosobruchus maculatus beetle (Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons) |
So why do these beetles have such "terrifying" penises?
A group of Swedish and American scientists has manipulated the male genitalia of bruchid beetles to find out why the insect's penis has evolved to be quite so "nasty, sharp and destructive," Science Nordic reports.
What the researchers have discovered is that the bruchid beetle's
penis -- though menacing in its spiny appearance and likely not
pleasurable for its mate -- is useful for sexual selection.
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