11 Interesting And Horrific Animal Mating Rituals

It is no secret that some people like it rough under the sheets, but these creatures take it to a whole new level. Love-making is typically seen as a special moment in the eyes of humans, but in nature, it can be an all-out battle for survival. Imagine being born for the sole purpose of being used as a baby machine. Some violent animal acts of sex can leave a partner wounded or even killed.

Dolphins Are Opportunistic

Male bottlenose dolphins like to hang out with their bros and go as far as living in groups of all males. It is normal for male dolphins to form bonds with their male companions in a group. These dolphins can go through homosexual periods in their lives, and there are some that continue this lifestyle for their entire life. A group of male dolphins will find a female dolphin and have their way with her. If the female refuses and tries to get away, the male dolphins will even resort to violence. The acts of violence include hitting the female with their fins, scratching her with their teeth or trying to belly-flip her. Dolphins are known to have intercourse for pleasure as well as reproduction.

Honeybee Orgy

Male honeybees take the phrase "living to serve" to the fullest extent. The main purpose of male bees is to have intercourse with the queen bee. Even though there are other female worker bees in a hive, they are all sterile. When the time comes to mate, the queen flies out to a place where the drones begin to swarm around her. In mid-air, the drones get a chance to have a special moment with the queen which abruptly ends with them falling to the ground and dying. Even though thousands of drones are part of the honeybee orgy, only about fourteen or so will share their sperm with the queen. Interestingly, the sperm is then stored and used when her eggs need fertilizing. The collected sperm is enough to last for the rest of the queen’s life, and she does not need to participate in sex ever again. Female bees are produced when the eggs are fertilized and drones are produced when the eggs are unfertilized.

Snail Darts

Snail mating can be very involved because most snails are hermaphrodites, meaning they have both female and male sex organs. There is a hole that serves as an entryway to both sets of sex organs. Snails set the scene by moving around each other in a circle and delicately touching each other using their tentacles. It all seems very romantic until the next stage where they begin shooting each other with pointy calcium structures. The darts help bring the two snails together, but they can also prove to be fatal since it's possible for the darts to pierce the internal organs of the snails. Since most snails are hermaphrodites, both snails may be able to transfer sperm. Both snails may release the sperm or one snail may do it all.

A Ball Of Garter snakes

Female garter snakes keep the male snakes waiting as they are known to come out of hibernation a little later than males. After a female has woken, the males waste no time and begin swarming around the females. The garter snakes essentially start to form balls, which consist of dozens of male snakes all trying to win over one female. To improve their chances, some male snakes will release a pheromone that resembles a female hormone to confuse the others and prevent them from having sexual contact with the real female. The mating balls can become quite violent, and the female snakes often try to get away. Males can even go as far as releasing deoxygenated air to suffocate the female which creates a stressful situation. The hostile environment makes the female react by opening her cloaca which presents the male with a mating opportunity.

Male Birds Have Cloacas

Most birds have an opening in their body responsible for going both #1 and #2. The same opening, known as the cloaca, is where the magic happens. When a male bird is in the mood, the cloaca swells and releases sperm. A female bird’s cloaca will swell as well. The male bird will rub his swollen, sperm covered cloaca all over the female's swollen cloaca, and after the moment has ended, the sperm will make their way to the ovaries to start the fertilization of her eggs. Most birds tend to stick to a routine when it comes to mating, usually with the male dominating the female using a top position.

Banana Slug Copulation

Banana slugs are hermaphrodites that begin the mating process by releasing slime which has been infused with a pheromone that signals the readiness to mate. The slug parties that are interested will consume the leftover slime until they catch up with their mate. Once the slugs have found one another, they take turns penetrating each other with their penises. The slug’s penis is approximately as long as its body. After intercourse, the penises of the slugs are chewed off.

Praying Mantis Menace

A Male praying mantis must prove himself worthy of a female’s invitation to have sex. The male performs a dance for the female to prove his worth, and the female then chooses whether to accept or deny. If the female deems the male worthy, she allows him to mate with her but not without a price. The female praying mantis is known to chew off the head of her male counterpart after or during the act of intercourse. The female does not always perform this act and only about thirty-one percent of cases end in decapitation. The rest of the time the males manage to fly away.