Animals that masturbate

Animal non-reproductive sexual behavior encompasses sexual activities that non-human animals participate in which do not lead to the reproduction of the species. Animals that masturbate procreation continues to be the primary explanation for sexual behavior in animalsrecent observations on animal behavior have given alternative reasons for the engagement in sexual activities by animals.

Porcupines prefer sex toys, and moose get off by rubbing their antlers on trees. While scientists debate the evolutionary reason for masturbation, there's no doubt that humans are not alone in their self-pleasure from time to time. Here are some other creatures that partake in solo sex. While our shared interest with the animal kingdom highlights some similarities between Homo sapiens and the rest of Earth's fauna, scientists say there are some differences in how we go about it. For one, many animals that masturbate don't continue the deed until orgasm humans seem to be rather goal-oriented on this point.

Animals that masturbate

We get the urge because our ancestors did too, even back to the earliest mammals and reptiles. The diversity of animals that have been caught taking a bit of alone time goes far, far beyond dogs humping legs. It should be no surprise to anyone that our primate cousins are champion masturbators. They have hands, after all. The art of self-pleasure has been observed in males from about 80 species from ape to monkey to lemur, making it one of the most common and widespread primate sexual behaviors. Females from at least 50 species also get into the act, and they can get creative: for example, female orangutans and capuchin monkeys have both been observed using sticks and other plant parts as makeshift dildos. A male Asian elephant has a long, hefty penis that he can move around with a set of enlarged muscles at its base. What is it with the big blubbery handless animals? Male walruses will rub their front flippers over the shaft of their alarmingly large penis. Rodents jack off, too. During the breeding season, both male and female porcupines rub sticks against their genitals. University of Manitoba biologist Jane Waterman, who first quantified this behavior, suggests that because the males and females have many mates over the breeding period, jerking off immediately after sex might keep males from picking up and spreading sexually transmitted infections. Young male vampire bats and male fruit bats as in this video have both been seen pleasuring themselves with their tongues. Typically, an animal will groom and lick his penis, sometimes achieving orgasm. Since they rest hanging upside down by their feet, that can get a bit messy.

We get the urge because our ancestors did too, even back to the earliest mammals and reptiles. The unpublished description was only rediscovered a few years ago, animals that masturbate.

Dr Matilda Brindle UCL Anthropology shares her new study in The Conversation on the evolutionary origins and advantages of auto sexual behaviour across the animal kingdom. Self-pleasure is common across the animal kingdom: from dogs humping unwitting teddy bears to dolphins thrusting their penises into decapitated fish yes, really , animal masturbation is a raucous affair. We focused our research on primates the group of animals humans belong to because, if there were a prize for the most inventive onanists in the animal kingdom, they would win. Young chimpanzees fashion DIY sex toys from bits of chewed-up fruit. Female Sulawesi crested macaques slap their rumps while repeatedly inserting their fingers into their vaginas. In one study, captive male chacma baboons masturbated while ogling females sporting large prosthetic bottoms, attached by researchers to replicate the natural swellings females develop when at their most fertile. Despite masturbation being such common behaviour, there is very little research in this area.

By Darren Incorvaia. June 6, at pm. Though masturbation is common across the animal kingdom, it seems, at its face, to be an evolutionary paradox: Why would an animal waste time, energy and reproductive resources on self-pleasure instead of copulating with a partner? Studies on individual species have found some explanations. Low-ranking Japanese macaques Macaca fuscata , for example, masturbate to keep their sperm fresh for when they get a rare chance to mate. But the questions of when and why masturbation evolved in the first place have remained unsolved. A new study, published in the June 7 Proceedings of the Royal Society B , suggests that the evolutionary history of masturbation in primates extends back at least 40 million years, and the behavior might indeed help male primates be ready to mate when they get the chance, and also stay free of disease. To determine when masturbation first evolved in primates, evolutionary biologist Matilda Brindle of University College London and colleagues sifted through the scientific literature to find records of which primates masturbate and which do not, whether in the wild or in captivity. This was especially important for information on female masturbation, Brindle says, which tends to go unnoticed because of a lack of an easy-to-spot erection. The team then used computer analyses to determine where in the primate lineage the behavior most likely originated.

Animals that masturbate

The evolutionary advantages of autosexual behaviour have been revealed in a new study led by UCL researchers. Masturbation is common across the animal kingdom but is especially prevalent amongst primates, including humans. Historically, this behaviour was considered to be either pathological or a by-product of sexual arousal, and recorded observations were too fragmented to understand its distribution, evolutionary history, or adaptive significance. New research published in Proceedings of The Royal Society B finds that, perhaps surprisingly, this behaviour seems to serve an evolutionary purpose. The findings indicate that masturbation is an ancient trait in primates, and that — at least in males — it increases reproductive success and helps to avoid contracting sexually transmitted infections STIs. Dr Matilda Brindle UCL Anthropology and colleagues assembled the largest ever dataset of primate masturbation, collating information from nearly sources, including published academic papers, and questionnaires and personal communications from primatologists and zookeepers. From these data, the authors tracked the distribution of autosexual behaviour across primates, to understand when and why it evolved in both females and males. The team found that masturbation has a long evolutionary history amongst primates and was most likely present in the common ancestor of all monkeys and apes including humans. It was less clear whether the ancestor of the other primates lemurs, lorises and tarsiers masturbated, largely because data were more scarce for these groups. To understand why evolution would produce this seemingly non-functional trait, Dr Brindle and colleagues tested several hypotheses.

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ISSN In one reported observation, a male spotted hyena attempted to mate with a female hyena , but she succeeded in driving him off. More From Discover. Understanding Bestiality and Zoophilia. Oxford University Press. Engagements of sexual activities during non-breeding seasons have been observed in the animal kingdom. But other penguins since then have been observed exhibiting the same behavior. Kyoto University Press. J Reprod Fertil Suppl. An affectionate activity can be as simple as licking. David Linden , professor of neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University , remarks that:.

Despite centuries of taboo and titillation , masturbation in primates appears to serve an evolutionary purpose. A study published June 6 in the journal Proceedings of The Royal Society B , found that self-stimulating increases reproductive success and helps primates avoid sexually transmitted infections STI , at least in males.

One of the best prospects period falls to Even though penguins can't fly, they have found ways to get off. Random House Publishing Group. Woolly mammoth de-extinction inches closer after elephant stem cell breakthrough. Apes and Monkeys use a variety of objects to masturbate with and even deliberately create implements for sexual stimulation Oh, and they also sometimes insert their penis' in each others' blowholes. View comments. Marge Wissman on BirdChannel. Cats, too, enjoy self-fellation. The A. The Future Is Here.