Known for their strong social relationships, dolphins have sex throughout the year, not just to reproduce but to establish and maintain social bonds. Some anatomical remains of female dolphins obtained so far suggest that dolphins have a clitoris-like structure that provides arousal during mating. There were also reports of them stimulating each other’s clitoris with their noses and flippers.

A research team led by biologist Patricia Brennan studied dolphins and the structures that allow humans to enjoy sex. The study, which revealed that female dolphins have a clitoris just like women, was published in the journal Current Biology.

Functional clitoris proven in dolphins

Patricia Brennan and her colleagues conducted a study to examine the dolphin clitoris in more detail. Examining the structure of the clitoris of 11 women who died naturally, the researchers compared it to the similar structure found in female dolphins. As a result of the examination, it was seen that the dolphin clitoris had a large stimulus tissue that filled with blood just like the human clitoris. Findings, the clitoris in females in dolphins; proved the existence of a structure similar to the tissue at the tip of the penis in men, with many sensory nerves.

“The dolphin clitoris has many features that suggest it functions to provide pleasure to females,” said Patricia Brennan, an assistant professor of biological sciences. Brennan stated that while the genitals of dolphins are so different from humans, the structures that enable them to take pleasure are surprisingly similar to each other.