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Sea Slug’s Disposable Penis Surprises Scientists
By Angela Messina, February 16, 2013 @ 05:48 PM (EST)
Source: BBC Science and Environment
Source: BBC Science and Environment
Japanese researchers were surprised to learn that Chromodoris reticulata, a species of sea slug, is able to shed, regrow, and reuse its penis after mating.
The sea slug doesn’t have a normal sex life to begin with as it is a “simultaneous hermaphrodite,” meaning that it has both male and female sex organs and uses both at once when mating.
A team of Japanese scientists observed Chromodoris reticulata collected from coral reefs around Japan. They watched as the creatures mated and shed their penises, but were not expecting to see that the sea slugs had regrown their penises 24 hours later.
The sea slugs were able to regenerate their penises and copulate up to three times in a row with spans of 24 hours in between.
Read more here.
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