When it comes to mating rituals, humans have some unique characteristics compared to other animals. However, there are a few select species in the animal kingdom that actually mate very similarly to humans.

If you’re short on time, here’s a quick answer: Bonobos, dolphins, and chimpanzees are some of the few animals that mate face-to-face, engage in foreplay, and have sex for pleasure and social bonding like humans do.

In this comprehensive guide, we will explore 5 different animals that have surprising human-like mating behaviors, characteristics, and rituals. We will look at the scientific research behind how each of these creatures form romantic bonds, engage in foreplay, have intercourse, and even have sex for pleasure just like humans.

Bonobos

Face-to-Face Mating

Unlike other primates, bonobos prefer to mate face-to-face, allowing both partners to gaze into each other’s eyes. This position promotes intimacy and social bonding between mates (De Waal & Lanting, 1997).

During intercourse, bonobos embrace, kiss, and engage in tongue-touching or oral sex, behaviors that encourage affiliative relationships. Their mating is typically a relaxed affair with gentle thrusting. Such tenderness sets bonobos apart from the violent mating seen in chimpanzees.

Foreplay and Oral Sex

Bonobos incorporate extensive foreplay and oral sex into their mating rituals, unlike most mammals. Females will rub their clitorises together rapidly while staring into each other’s eyes and engaging in French kissing.

This lesbian behavior, known as genito-genital rubbing (or GG rubbing), may strengthen social bonds between females (Parish, 1996). During mating sessions, male bonobos often perform cunnilingus on females and fellatio on other males.

In fact, oral sex accounts for roughly one-third of all bonobo sexual activity, demonstrating their affinity for non-reproductive sexual behaviors (Hohmann & Fruth, 2000).

Frequent Sex and Mate Sharing

Bonobos are highly sexual creatures that seek sex not just for reproduction but also as a social tool. They engage in more frequent sex than any primate outside of humans. On average, bonobos copulate one or two times per hour (Stanford, 1998).

And unlike their chimp cousins who only mate when females are in heat, bonobos are sexually receptive most of the time. Their libido and varied sexual appetites lead to diverse sexual activity among all ages and genders.

Another distinctly human behavior seen in bonobos is mate sharing. Though male bonobos form exclusive long-term bonds with females, partners will “lend” their mates to other males in the group for sex.

Often, high-ranking females will initiate sex with other females’ partners to gain status and social allies. Tolerance of infidelity may enable more harmonious relations between the two sexes (Parish, 1996). Thanks to the bonobos’ sexual openness, paternity is often hard to decipher.

In addition to reproduction, bonobos use frequent, public sex sessions to reduce tensions in the group. Sexual arousal seems contagious among these primates. Scientists have observed crowds of bonobos hysterically mating after a simple glance from one animal, reminiscent of a “domino effect”.

Their status as both the most empathetic and sexually voracious animals makes bonobos unique among primates (De Waal & Lanting, 1997).

References:

  • De Waal, F., & Lanting, F. (1997). Bonobo: The Forgotten Ape. University of California Press.
  • Parish, A. R. (1996). Female relationships in bonobos (Pan paniscus). Human Nature, 7(1), 61-96.
  • Hohmann, G., & Fruth, B. (2000). Use and function of genital contacts among female bonobos. Animal Behaviour, 60(1), 107-120.
  • Stanford, C. B. (1998). The social behavior of chimpanzees and bonobos. Current Anthropology, 39(4), 399-420.

Dolphins

Intimate Body Contact and Caressing

Like humans, dolphins engage in intimate contact and caressing with their loved ones. They rub fins, nuzzle one another, and stay close together while swimming. Dolphins form strong bonds and often swim synchronously with their mates.

This intimate body contact strengthens social bonds and relationships.

Dolphins caress each other with their fins and rub against each other when they meet. Bottlenose dolphins caress with their pectoral fins, whereas other dolphin species rub against each other with their melons (foreheads). This tactile stimulation is a display of affection and helps maintain bonds.

Long-Term Bonding

Dolphins form long-term bonds with their mates, just like humans do. These bonds can last years or even decades. Pairs and trios of dolphins frequently stay together for life. Having long-term bonds provides stability and allows dolphins to cooperatively raise offspring together.

Research shows that dolphins remember and recognize their former tank mates and will seek them out years later. The strength of social bonds in dolphins may be comparable to the strength of mother-calf bonds in some primates.

Sex for Pleasure

Scientists believe dolphins have sex not just for reproduction but also for pleasure and social bonding. Evidence shows dolphins engage in extensive foreplay, sex play, and masturbation, just like humans do. Homosexual behavior is common as well.

Having sex for pleasure strengthens social bonds, relieves stress, and gives joy. The clitoris of female dolphins is located alongside the vaginal opening, allowing for easy stimulation during copulation. This may enhance pleasure during sex.

Male dolphins sometimes form temporary “bachelor groups” engaging in extensive sex play and sociosexual behavior. This allows younger males to practice mating skills before establishing long-term relationships.

Chimpanzees

Face-to-Face Intimacy

Like humans, chimpanzees engage in face-to-face intimate interactions during mating. According to research from renowned primatologist Jane Goodall, male and female chimps will often gaze into each other’s eyes for extended periods while copulating.

They may also caress each other’s faces gently with their hands, mimicking human kissing behaviors. This suggests that chimps, like us, feel some level of emotional bonding and affection for their mates (Jane Goodall Institute).

Kissing and Caressing

In addition to eye gazing and face touching during sex, chimps also spend time kissing and caressing each other afterward. As Goodall documented, chimp couples frequently engage in open-mouth kissing, hugging, and stroking of their partner’s hair and back post-coitus.

This intimate behavior, which echoes human cuddling, reveals the depth of romantic attachment and bond formation in chimpanzees (BBC Earth). It likely serves an important social function, strengthening the pair-bond between mates.

Sex to Diffuse Social Tension

Interestingly, while sex is used to solidify bonds between established partners, chimps will also mate quite openly and promiscuously within their communities. According to primatologists, the females are usually the initiators, soliciting sex from multiple males even when not in heat (ScienceDaily).

This may function to reduce aggressive conflicts and diffuse social tensions between dominant and subordinate individuals. So in a sense, casual sex allows peace and group cohesion. Still a distinctly human dynamic!

Macaques

Prolonged Face-to-Face Copulation

Among all primate species, macaques engage in some of the lengthiest face-to-face copulations, with sessions lasting up to 30 minutes (Dixson, 2012). This prolonged intimate contact enables partners to strengthen social bonds and assess compatibility.

Studies of Japanese macaques show that female macaques gaze into the eyes of their mates during copulation and prefer males that return their gaze (Fujita et al., 1997). This face-to-face mating likely evolved to enable macaques to evaluate potential long-term mates.

Female Choice and Refusal

Female macaques exhibit mate choice and often refuse the advances of undesirable males. Females prefer high ranking males and selectively present to signal willingness to mate (Dixson, 2012). However, males sometimes use aggression and force copulations on unwilling females.

DNA evidence reveals that dominant males sire around 50% of infants, while 40% are sired by subordinates, and 10% by outside males, demonstrating female mate choice favors high status partners when possible (Soltis, 2004).

Post-Sex Cuddling

After mating, macaque pairs often remain in close contact and engage in grooming. Males groom and cradle infants as well. The oxytocin released during sex and skin-to-skin contact promotes pair-bonding (Snowdon et al., 2010). However, macaques are not sexually monogamous.

Both males and females mate with multiple partners. But prolonged interpersonal contact during and after sex reinforces social bonds between recurring mates.

Prairie Voles

Lifelong Monogamy

Prairie voles are one of the few mammal species that form monogamous, lifelong pair bonds (isn’t that amazing?). After mating, male and female prairie voles prefer to spend time with their partner and become distressed when separated, much like human couples do.

This lifelong bonding is facilitated by the release of hormones like oxytocin and vasopressin during mating, which promote attachment. In fact, injecting these hormones into prairie voles that haven’t mated will still encourage partner preference, showing the powerful role neurochemistry plays in pair bonding for these endearing critters.

Affectionate Behaviors

Prairie voles display behaviors that seem tender and loving to human eyes. Mated pairs groom each other frequently and prefer to nest together. Males attentively guard their mates, warding off any potential suitors. And both males and females participate in rearing their pups.

Scientists have even observed prairie voles “kissing” when reunited after a separation. Isn’t that just darling? These behaviors strengthen the bond between mates. Comparative studies show that closely related vole species do not form monogamous bonds, making the prairie vole’s capacity for pairing and affection seem even more wondrous.

Attachment After Mating

Unlike the vast majority of mammals, which are polygamous, prairie voles form lifelong, monogamous bonds with their mates. This bonding occurs rapidly after mating due to hormonal changes in the brain brought on by copulation.

Oxytocin and vasopressinlevels increase after mating,while dopamine levels decrease. These neurochemical changes are associated with pair bonding behaviors. For example, female prairie voles who received a vasopressin antagonist after mating did not show a preference for their partner compared to females who received a saline control.

The neurobiology of prairie vole bonding has provided intriguing clues about how human love and attachment may similarly arise in the brain.

Conclusion

As we have seen, bonobos, dolphins, chimpanzees, macaques, and prairie voles are some of the surprising animals that have human-like mating behaviors. From engaging in foreplay and oral sex like bonobos to forming monogamous bonds and cuddling after sex like prairie voles, these creatures’ sexual behaviors closely mirror our own in many ways.

What this shows is that some aspects of human sexuality like pleasure, intimacy, and emotional bonding have parallels across the animal kingdom among certain highly social species. So while our mating habits are unique in some regards, they have evolutionary origins that pre-date modern homo sapiens.

Understanding how other creatures reproduce and relate sexually can ultimately give us insights into our shared social and biological drives.

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