Sister blog of Physicists of the Caribbean in which I babble about non-astronomy stuff, because everyone needs a hobby

Tuesday 28 March 2017

Seals that have sex with penguins

Huh.

All four known sexual incidents followed a common pattern. Each time a seal chased, captured and mounted the penguin. The seal then attempted copulation several times, lasting about five minutes each, with periods of rest in between. In three of the four recorded incidents the seal let the penguin go. But on one of the more recent occasions, the seal killed and ate the penguin after trying to mate with it.

"Perhaps it is a release of sexual frustration, given the hormonal surges during seal breeding season. It is very unlikely to be failed mate recognition - i.e. the misidentification of the penguin as a female seal. All in all it's difficult to say really," he admits.

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20141117-why-seals-have-sex-with-penguins

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