Prostitution among animals
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Prostitution among animals is the
Penguins
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Prostitution in animals was first reported in 1998 by Fiona Hunter, a researcher at the University of Cambridge, and Lloyd Davis, of the University of Otago, who had spent five years observing the mating behavior of Adélie penguins. The study was conducted as part of an Antarctica New Zealand program on Ross Island, approximately 800 miles (1,300 km) from the South Pole.[1]
According to the report about the study published by BBC News Online, some female penguins engage in sexual activity with penguins other than their partners. These female penguins have sex with unattached males and take a pebble from the male's nest after having sex. (Pebbles are used for building nests but are scarce and hence valuable.)[6] In an actual study, the researchers speculate that the female has bent over to grab a stone and the male has misinterpreted the gesture—she has not changed her mind or performed a trick. But researchers are still studying the phenomenon, and a consensus has not yet been reached; it is assumed that either the female is baiting or that the male deliberately chooses to misinterpret the gesture, as rape is common among these penguins. The BBC further reported Hunter as saying that the female penguins probably did not engage in prostitution only for stones. Hunter believed "what they are doing is having copulation for another reason and just taking the stones as well. We don't know exactly why, but they are using the males". This behavior was also suggested as a mate choice process by which the females might find a possible future mate. This would provide a female penguin with another male penguin should their current mate die. The study speculates that male penguins engaged in sex with prostitute females only for sexual satisfaction. According to Hunter's observation, the number of prostitute penguins was very low, and she approximated this as "only a few percent".[1]
While the sensationalized versions of the study emphasize prostitution, the research data itself is less sensational. The data shows that when extra-pair copulation occurs at the male's nesting site, the female takes one or more stones. In contrast, when extra-pair copulation occurs at the female's nesting site, the male never takes a stone. A male who has copulated with a female benefits his progeny when she takes a stone. Sometimes copulation does not occur, but the female still takes a stone. Both males and females steal stones; sometimes they are successful, but at other times, they are attacked. The female is not always willing to copulate to avoid a fight. The researchers speculate about the possible genetic fitness advantages and disadvantages of the practice, and they are not sure that the female copulates mainly in order to obtain a stone.[7]
Chimpanzees
A study conducted by the
Capuchin monkeys
A study at
See also
References
- ^ a b c "Penguins are turning to prostitution". BBC. 1998-02-26. Archived from the original on 2017-08-06. Retrieved 2012-02-18.
- ^ Prostitution in animals Archived 2011-09-07 at the Wayback Machine. The Cambridge Student
- ^ McKee, Maggie (2005-01-02) Mating in a Material World Archived 2017-05-12 at the Wayback Machine, National Wildlife Federation
- ^ Connor, Steve (2009-04-08). "Sex for meat – how chimps seduce their mates". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 2023-01-30. Retrieved 2017-10-31.
- ISBN 0-7619-9116-6.
- ^ Kubny, Heiner. "Adélie penguins – the stone thieves". Polarjournal. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
- (PDF) from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2013-03-05.
- PMID 19352509.
- ^ Monkey Business Archived 2015-03-15 at the Wayback Machine, by Stephen J. Dubner and Steven Levitt; at the New York Times; published June 5, 2005; retrieved April 10, 2014
Further reading
- Kanazawa, Satoshi (Mar 2011). "Do Men Try to Impress Prostitutes?". The Scientific Fundamentalist. Psychology Today.