Friday, February 8, 2008

Barnacles go to great lengths to mate!

Compelled to mate, yet firmly attached to the rock, barnacles have evolved the longest penis of any animal for their size - up to 8 times their body length - so they can find and fertilize distant neighbors. Putting a new spin on the phrase "Hung like a Barnacle"

Barnacles appear to have acquired the capacity to change the size and shape of their penises to closely match local wave conditions. When wave action is light, a longer (thinner) penis can reach more mates, but at times of higher wave action, a shorter (stouter) penis is more manoeuvrable in flow and therefore can reach more mates.

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