Bonobo Mothers Meddle In Their Sons’ Sex Lives – Making Them Three Times More Likely To Father Children

BONOBOS DOING WHAT THEY DO BY GREG @ FLICKR

Bonobo Mothers Meddle In Their Sons’ Sex Lives – Making Them Three Times More Likely To Father Children

Dating is never easy, for any of us. Scenarios play over in our heads, classic questions and worries bombard us. Will she like me? Does he share the same interests? Will my mum be watching us have sex? Thankfully, that last question isn’t actually one we humans have to deal with. But new research shows that for bonobos, sex really is often a family affair. What’s more, rather than being an embarrassing hindrance, motherly presence greatly benefits bonobo sons during the deed.

Along with chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), bonobos (Pan paniscus) are our closest living relatives. Restricted to a 500,000 km² thickly-forested zone of the Congo Basin, these endangered great apes were only formally discovered in 1928, which until 2017 made them the most recently-described living great ape species.

Operating in female-led social systems, bonobos are capable of showing a wide range of what were long held as human-specific feelings and emotions, such as sensitivity, patience, compassion, kindness, empathyand altruism.

They’re also perhaps the most promiscuous non-human species on the planet.

Trump's Silverback Gorilla Status Went Into High Gear With French First Lady Brigitte Macron

Trump's Silverback Gorilla Status Went Into High Gear With French First Lady Brigitte Macron

Trump's effusive 'you are a woman and therefore I will deal with your physicality, rating you on my womanly attractiveness scale' approach to dealing with Brigitte Macron, received much press commentary. 

"You're in such good shape," Trump told Madame Macron, when he was standing with her in the shadows of the Hôtel national des Invalides in Paris on Thursday, during his first state visit to the country. Then, to reaffirm his observation, he turned to newly-elected French president, Emmanuel Macron, affirming his observation: "She's in such good physical shape."

It's the dominating imagery of Trump in the video that caused women worldwide to hope that Madame Macron never finds herself alone in a room with the President of the United States.