Mating is a very important aspect of nature instilled in all animals. It ensures the future of that particular animal species and is one of the most crucial life stages in an animal’s life. Several animals have developed peculiar and bizarre mating rituals over the years which ultimately lead to securing the future of their progeny. Let’s see what the most peculiar ones are, shall we?
Gray Whales
These mammoth creatures have a very complicated mating system. They mate stomach-to-stomach while floating in the ocean! How do they accomplish this feat, you ask? With a threesome, of course! Once the female Gray Whale gives the green signal and they begin the “deed” another whale supports the mating of two on his back to keep them from sinking!
Anglerfish
This fish looks straight out of the Piranha movies right? Well, their mating process matches their aesthetics perfectly. The male Anglerfish attaches itself to the female’s body with the help of his sharp teeth (literal thirst trap!) and begins to fuse with her body. Yes, you read that right, fuse. His eyes and other organs begin melting into her and at some point, they even share the same bloodstream. The only part of the male that doesn’t melt into her is his testes! And since the female has several sexual encounters, she can have many males “latched” on to her at one point.
Giraffe
Consent matters. This is something all giraffes strictly abide by! A male will drink a female giraffe’s urine to see if she is fertile. The male will then begin his courtship and if the female consents, they will mate. Giraffes are polygamous animals and usually have no gender preference, which means the male doesn’t really care if he is mating with a female or a male.
Ducks
Male ducks, or drakes, are particularly aggressive during mating season. Sometimes they may force a female into intercourse. However, the female duck anatomy is quite complicated. The female ducks have vaginas that have several “dead ends”, and they use the said dead ends in order to avoid pregnancies from unwanted sexual encounters. If a female wishes to be impregnated by a particular male, she will align her body in such a way that the sperm reaches the right destination. If she does not wish to be impregnated, she will not align herself correctly and the sperm will be deposited into one of the dead ends.
Bees
If ‘going out with a bang’ was an appropriate way to describe any sexual encounter, it would definitely apply to bees. The male Bee’s, or Drone’s, role is to basically take care of the Queen and mate. The Queen mates with several males. Once the male finishes, his testicle explodes with the force of the ejaculation and his penis gets ripped off (OUCH!).
Praying Mantis
Probably the most commonly known fact about these little guys is that if the female gets hungry during mating, she bites the head off of the male. Sometimes she may do so even mid-copulation! Yes, she literally bites his head off after or during sex. That’s not all—the weirdest part about this whole encounter: the male’s body will continue copulating even after having his head bitten off! (Talk about dedication amirite?)
Elephants
As the largest land animals, it makes sense that the male elephant has a penis erection that can range from around 2 to 6 feet (yes; I did not mistype; it is feet) and around 14 inches in diameter! And that’s not the biggest (*ahem*) weird fact. The one that takes the cake is that the male Elephant uses his penis as a fifth leg (!) to gain support while mounting the female!
What’s weird to us is normal to them! I leave you to wonder maybe human habits are weird to the rest of the natural world?