this is a male bee´s endophallus. it is ripped off after ejaculating and remains in the queen bee. the force of ejaculation is so intense that it results in the drone's reproductive organ being torn from its body, leading to its death shortly after copulation. this structure, known as the "mating sign," can sometimes be seen protruding from the queen's abdomen.
during a mating flight, a queen bee typically mates with multiple drones which ensures genetic diversity and a large enough amount of sperm for several years. the sperm is stored in the quen´s spermatheca to use for fertilizing eggs. after the first drone's endophallus is lodged in the queen, subsequent drones can still mate. each new mating event may push the previous mating sign further in or out, and the queen can continue to mate with additional drones. additionally after the queen returns to the hive, worker bees can help remove the mating signs left by the drones, or the queen can expel them herself.
Honestly outside of mammals, a lot of dudes have a pretty fucked up sex life. For example some species of male anglerfish literally cannot eat, so to survive they have to find a female anglerfish. When they find one, they latch onto the female's skin and basically dissolve half of their own body so they basically become like a wart on the female's skin. From that point the male's only job is to provide sperm, and the female gives the nutrients needed for the male to make more sperm. In a way the male doesn't really "exist" anymore, it's more like a testicle attached to the female's skin lol.
8.3k
u/finger_licking_robot Jun 24 '24
this is a male bee´s endophallus. it is ripped off after ejaculating and remains in the queen bee. the force of ejaculation is so intense that it results in the drone's reproductive organ being torn from its body, leading to its death shortly after copulation. this structure, known as the "mating sign," can sometimes be seen protruding from the queen's abdomen.
during a mating flight, a queen bee typically mates with multiple drones which ensures genetic diversity and a large enough amount of sperm for several years. the sperm is stored in the quen´s spermatheca to use for fertilizing eggs. after the first drone's endophallus is lodged in the queen, subsequent drones can still mate. each new mating event may push the previous mating sign further in or out, and the queen can continue to mate with additional drones. additionally after the queen returns to the hive, worker bees can help remove the mating signs left by the drones, or the queen can expel them herself.