Birds do it; bees do it; bats do it too—
And pretty much anything down at the zoo
From Galapagos Tortoise to Red Kangaroo
Seems plenty of creatures have fun when they screw
The sexual prowess of hamster or rat
Or the lust of a Tom, whether turkey or cat—
But whatever you do, be advised when you chat
Not to speak of the human along with the bat
The world all around us is vast and complex
And it’s filled up with species that like having sex—
And scholars who talk about some of the specs
Shouldn’t fear that the axe will descend on their necks
The facts are the facts, and there’s no need to quarrel;
Or hide what we’re meaning, in verbiage floral—
It cannot mean someone is more or less moral
For noting both humans and bats enjoy oral
But just cast your eyes upon U. College Cork,
Where discussions of bats and their sexual torque—
The gymnastic maneuvers they ply when they pork—
Might imply we have babies through sex, not through stork
If you’d like to express with me, strong opposition,
Upholding the freedom that’s long been tradition
(Cos no one expects the Bat Sex Inquisition!)
Please follow the link, then, and sign the petition.
Cuttlecap tip to PZ, of course.
Well, male bees explode when they have mated. In some insects there is what is known as 'traumatic insemmination' where the male uses a hypodermic intromittent organ to pierce through the female's body which causes injury. Some marine slugs have chemicals in the ejaculate that burn through the mate's skin.In other insects copulation causes injury to the female. And the chemicals in the seminal fluid of Drosophila melanogaster are toxic to the female.Sexual coercion is also common across species with sometimes sexual violence (eg chimpanzees). And there is forced sex in those fruit bats too. Sexual conflict – the evolutionary biology of sex is impossible to understand without understanding the conflicts of interest between the sexes over when, whether, and how often to mate. The reproductive interests of the sexes only converge when there is true monogamy, otherwise it is often a war of sorts with manipulation and trickery and coercion.So yes there is pleasure to be had from mating – especially for the male who is to be rewarded for achieving his purpose in life – but no, it is certainly far from being ubiquitous fun for all and conflict is often the name of the game.