Some Brown Bears Love Oral Sex
Zoologists in Eastern Europe have discovered that brown bears enjoy homosexual activity—specifically oral sex between male bears.
Findings published in Zoo Biology reports on ”the first observations of long‐term, recurrent fellatio in captive brown bears kept in proper conditions.”
More than 116 hours of bear activity at a Croatian wildlife sanctuary was studied by researchers at the Polish Academy of Sciences, who noted 28 instances of fellatio between two male bears. (Each “interlude” lasted between one and four minutes):
All cases appeared to be initiated by the provider, who approached the receiver while he was resting on his side or with part of his abdomen exposed. If the receiver’s genitals were not exposed, the provider would push his head into the pelvic region or use his paws to separate the hind legs.After accessing and initial licking of the penis, the provider would find a more comfortable posture, such as sitting or lying…once actual sucking started, neither bear changed position.
The behavior has been noted before, but usually only with captive bears kept in substandard conditions, where it was assumed to be a marker of stress.
The researchers think that the Croatian bears may have adopted the habit because both bears were brought to the sanctuary as orphans, well before they would have been weaned from their mother. “In the case reported here, the provider may have found a substitute for teat‐sucking that also resulted in a let‐down of substitute ‘milk,’” says head researcher Agnieszka Sergiel.
Or maybe, y’know, it just feels nice?
Bonus figure from the main text:
Figure 1. Selected frames from the footage of the fellatio behavior in the brown bear males: (a) the individual providing fellatio approaching the other individual resting on side, (b)–(d) phases of fellatio.
pics: Discover Mag
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