It is known that female mammals have a clitoris, although it is an organ that has not been studied in general. Now, an international team, led by the University of Adelaide (Australia), has discovered that snakes also have one, providing the first anatomical description of it in a pioneering study of its kind. The results have just been published in the journal ‘Proceedings of the Royal Society B’.
“Throughout the animal kingdom, female genitalia are overlooked compared to male genitalia,” said Megan Folwell, from the University of Adelaide’s School of Biological Sciences and lead author of the study. “Our study refutes the longstanding assumption that the clitoris (hemiclitores) is absent or non-functional in snakes.”
The research examined the female genitalia of adult snake specimens from nine species, compared to the genitalia of adult and juvenile male snakes. Specifically, they studied the Acanthophis antarcticus (also known as death adder), the Collected Pseudechisthe Pseudechis weigeli and the Pseudonaja ingrami (native to different parts of Australia), the Agkistrodon bilineatus (native to Mexico and Central America to Honduras), Bits ramming (native to semi-arid regions of Africa and Arabia), Helicops polylepis (from Madre Selva Biological Station, Peru), Lampropeltis abnormal (from Los Brisas del Mogotón, Nicaragua), and Morelia spilota (native to Australia, New Guinea, Bismarck Archipelago, and northern Solomon Islands).
When studying it, they realized that the clitoris of snakes is heart-shaped. In addition, they found that it has nerves and red blood cells that resemble mammalian erectile tissue, suggesting that it can become swollen and stimulated during mating.
“This is important because snake mating is often thought to involve coercion from the female, not seduction,” he says. Kate Sanders, from the University of Adelaide’s School of Biological Sciences, and another of the study’s authors. “Through our research we have developed suitable anatomical descriptions and labels of the female genitalia of snakes. We can apply our findings to better understand the systematics, reproductive evolution, and ecology of snake-like reptiles such as lizards.”
Sanders adds that the research would not have been possible without Folwell’s new perspective on the evolution of the female genitalia. “This discovery shows that science needs diverse thinkers to move forward,” he says.