Interesting Animal Mating Rituals You Never Knew

Interesting Animal Mating Rituals You Never Knew 1 The Cuttlefish Mating Ritual Cuttlefish are sea mollusks that resemble squids. Their camouflaging abilities of color changes for protection also help in attracting females. The male dominated cuttlefish population results in a constant battle for a single female’s attention. However size is of no consequence and the intelligent ones succeed by disguising themselves as females to maneuver through clusters of males towards an unsuspecting female. They will hide their additional arm used as a sperm dispenser. Some fish also have the ability to appear as half male and half female to ward off rivals. 2 The Water Strider Mating Ritual The water strider may be an insignificant little water fly, but when it comes to mating, the male is very demanding. Without any ritualistic dance or attraction he will climb atop the female expecting her to give in immediately. If she fails to do so he attempts to kill her by rippling the water to attract a predator towards her. He will only stop the rippling activity if she gives in. The female’s singular ability to fertilize eggs produced throughout a lifespan makes her disinterested in mating. It is only due to the male’s threats that they do so. 3 Albatross Bird Mating Ritual The cartoon like mating ritual of the albatross birds involves movements with their bills mimicking a sort of sword fencing fight. However these birds are totally monogamous preferring the company of each other lifelong. Throughout their 50 year lifespan, they will breed with the same partner every year. The bill dance is a major vocal event with a lot of clucking and cackling noise unique to the pair involved. With time the ritual gets subdued and lessens with age similar to the marital relationships of human beings. 4 Sea Horses Mating Rituals Sea horses tend to behave in the same way as humans where mating and attraction is concerned. Before a couple can actually mate they will meet every day to engage in social activity and intimacy. In perfect synchronization, they will swim, entwine their tails, and move along with each other. A perfectly romantic process, leads to the female carefully placing her eggs in the abdominal pouch of the male. Here the male is the pregnant partner, weird but true. Once the babies are born they are abandoned on their own and the male looks for a new female again. 5 Prairie Voles Mating Ritual It is surprising to learn that prairie voles actually provide scientists with a case study for observing human bonding and why some tend to be promiscuous. Prairie voles due to their high content of natural neurochemical receptors like vasopressin and oxytocin are ensured of a strong bonding with their partners. Although some do tend t have affairs with other voles, in general they will remain faithful with one partner throughout their lifespan. The same partners will remain with each other raising several litters throughout the year. 6 Puffer Fish Mating Ritual The puffer fish is truly artistic in his mating attempts. This little 12 cm fish will go to great lengths to decorate the ocean floor over an area of 2 meters in a circled pattern using coral and shells. This artwork nest takes about 12 days after which the female lays eggs within the center of the circled design. The elaborate designs are reflective of the strength of the male puffer which is what attracts the female. These designs have intrigued scientists in earlier years until a live photographed act revealed the designs as the work of the little puffer. 7 The Quoll Mating Ritual The Quoll is a little marsupial found in the Australian region. Their size and innocence however is in extreme contrast to their aggressive mating. When the female is ready to mate, the male will copulate with such violent force that the female may be lucky to survive the process with just cuts and bruises. In some cases the male ends up killing his partner in the act or he is shunned by her. However what’s weird is that he may also end up killing himself due to exhaustive multiple attempts of mating and fighting other males. 8 Flamingo Mating Ritual When flamingoes mate it is an enjoyable dance in perfect synchronization involving the entire community. Akin to a well-choreographed chorus line, the birds will strut, stretch, puff and swivel about in perfect unison. Preceding every ritual, the males will oil themselves all over through secretions from a gland on the tail. This oil is also a protective cover from natural elements. It is believed that the female chooses a mate by close observation of the male who mirrors her actions best. 9 Bowerbird Mating Rituals The male bower bird is all class and sophistication when it comes to impressing his female. In order to attract her he will build a perfect beautiful nest complete with uniform design. Even the entrance will be a decorative arch lined with colorful objects. The perfection is reflective in the placement of objects that ensure the illusion of objects appearing uniform in size to the female. The nest building process is the main activity of the bower bird and it usually the more experienced older birds that get the female 10 Scorpion Mating Ritual The mating ritual of scorpions may seem a lively dance, but in effect, the wild aggressive actions initiated by the male are actually a defense mechanism to protect against the female’s bizarre nature of trying to devour his head first. Scorpions mate on moonless nights with the male hovering around the female a good 20 minutes. He then clasps the female’s pincers with his in order to restrain her and then deposits a spermatophore containing sperm on the surface of the ground. The female then absorbs the sperm into herself.

1 The Cuttlefish Mating Ritual

Murtaza Rangwala

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