1.
Curr Biol
; 33(22): R1182-R1183, 2023 11 20.
Artigo
em Inglês
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37989092
RESUMO
Copulatory behaviours stand as cornerstones of sexual selection, yet they remain mysterious in many species. Because of their nocturnal and elusive lifestyle, the copulatory behaviours of bats have been mostly overlooked1. Several aspects of bat reproduction differ from other mammals (e.g. prolonged sperm storage2, delayed development3). Here, we show that in serotine bats (Eptesicus serotinus) the penis is used as a 'copulatory arm' rather than an intromittent organ, revealing a novel copulatory behaviour in mammals.