Bonobo Mothers Help Their Sons Get More Sex

Discover how bonobo males get sex with crucial assistance from their mothers, showcasing unique female-led societies.

Written byAndrew Moseman
| 1 min read
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From Ed Yong

Most human men would be appalled at the idea of their mothers helping them to get laid. But then again, we’re hardly as sexually carefree as bonobos. While these apes live in female-led societies, the males also have a strict pecking order. For those at the bottom, mum’s assistance may be the only thing that allows them to father the next generation.

Martin Surbeck from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology found that bonobo mothers will help to usher their sons into the best spots for meeting females, and they’ll sometimes help their sons in conflicts with other males. Thanks to their help, their sons get more shots at sex than they would otherwise.

Read the rest of this post at Not Exactly Rocket Science

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