Antechinus

Antechinus: The tiny marsupials where males have sex until they die — then females eat their corpses

Name: Antechinus (Antechinus)

Where it lives: Australia

What it eats: Insects, spiders, centipedes and sometimes frogs and small reptiles

Why it's awesome: Antechinuses are little marsupials about the size of gerbils with a bizarre reproductive system: the males have sex until they die from organ failure.

There are 15 species of Antechinus all with the same deadly mating system. Their breeding season is a frenzied period lasting just two to three weeks. During this time, males give up sleep to have as much sex as possible, going for up to 14 hours at a time in the hope of passing on their genes. Once the breeding season ends, all the males drop dead. Read More »


Reposted from moods