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Size doesn't matter. Shape does.

Discussion in 'Sports and News' started by Bob Cook, Dec 21, 2011.

  1. Bob Cook

    Bob Cook Active Member

    Fascinating, though I don't think most of us would choose to make our living measuring beetle schlong.

    http://www.livescience.com/17540-genitals-shape-size.html

    Genitalia are important in the evolution of new species, since compatible parts are necessary for two individuals to successfully mate. Now, new research shows that as two species diverge, evolution acts on the shape and fit of genitalia first, leaving size issues for later.

    Using data from scarab beetle populations separated by anywhere from 50 years to millions of years, research led by scientists at Indiana University reveals that both male and female genitalia evolve rapidly and in parallel with one another. But between newly evolving species, genitals diverged faster in shape than they did in size.

    ...

    Strikingly, even beetle populations isolated from one another for a mere 50 years show large leaps in genitalia evolution, meaning the emergence of new species, unable to mate with one another (due to mismatched genitals), could happen faster than previously expected, Moczek said.

    The researchers examined the female genital tract and the male copulatory organs of five different species of Onthopagus beetles from around the world.

     
  2. Boom_70

    Boom_70 Well-Known Member

    The heartbreak of unmatched genitalia.

    As I recall that was the basis of story in A Bugs Life II
     
  3. LongTimeListener

    LongTimeListener Well-Known Member

    Beetles with mismatched genitalia cannot reproduce and thus should not be allowed to marry.
     
  4. goalmouth

    goalmouth Well-Known Member

    Unmatched genitalia? Now that's something to shoot for!
     
  5. FileNotFound

    FileNotFound Well-Known Member

    There's a pill for that, isn't there?
     
  6. Bubbler

    Bubbler Well-Known Member

    Meet The Beatles (Genitalia)
     
  7. poindexter

    poindexter Well-Known Member

    I blame Yoko.
     
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