Why don’t humans have a penis bone ? Scientists may now know | Science

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  • Why don’t humans have a penis bone? Scientists may now know | Science | The Guardian
    https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/dec/14/why-dont-humans-have-a-penis-bone-scientists-may-now-know-baculum

    Humans may have lost their penis bones when monogamy emerged as the dominant reproductive strategy during the time of Homo erectus about 1.9 million years ago, the scientists believe.

    Le lien vers les Proceedings of the Royal Society B ne conduit nulle part (pour le moment ou #paywall ?)
    Postcopulatory sexual selection influences baculum evolution in primates and carnivores
    http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/283/1844/20161736

    • Abstract
      The extreme morphological variability of the baculum across mammals is thought to be the result of sexual selection (particularly, high levels of postcopulatory selection). However, the evolutionary trajectory of the mammalian baculum is little studied and evidence for the adaptive function of the baculum has so far been elusive. Here, we use Markov chain Monte Carlo methods implemented in a Bayesian phylogenetic framework to reconstruct baculum evolution across the mammalian class and investigate the rate of baculum length evolution within the primate order. We then test the effects of testes mass (postcopulatory sexual selection), polygamy, seasonal breeding and intromission duration on the baculum in primates and carnivores. The ancestral mammal did not have a baculum, but both ancestral primates and carnivores did. No relationship was found between testes mass and baculum length in either primates or carnivores. Intromission duration correlated with baculum presence over the course of primate evolution, and prolonged intromission predicts significantly longer bacula in extant primates and carnivores. Both polygamous and seasonal breeding systems predict significantly longer bacula in primates. These results suggest the baculum plays an important role in facilitating reproductive strategies in populations with high levels of postcopulatory sexual selection.

    • In monogamous relationships, the male does not need to spend a long time penetrating the female, because she is not likely to be leapt upon by other amorous males. That, at least, is the theory.

      En fait la monogamie ici ne s’applique qu’aux femmes. Les hommes à ma connaissance ne sont pas monogames chez les humains et les femmes y sont contraintes depuis ... L’homo etrectus.