Galahad
.....an appointment
- Joined
- May 22, 2000
- Messages
- 11,464
Researcher finds size matters when it comes to bats' evolution
SYRACUSE, N.Y. For some male bats, size does matter when it comes to brain power.
A team of researchers at Syracuse University found that in bat species where the females are promiscuous, the males boasting the largest testicles also had the smallest brains.
Conversely, where the females were faithful, the males had smaller testicles and larger brains.
David Hoskens -- a British biologist who's a leading authority on mating behavior among bats -- says the study offers evidence that males in some species make an evolutionary trade-off between intelligence and sexual prowess.
Biologist Scott Pitnick led the Syracuse study, which was published in December in an online science journal. His team looked at 334 species of bats for the study.
On the Net:
The Royal Society: http://www.pubs.royalsoc.ac.uk
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. For some male bats, size does matter when it comes to brain power.
A team of researchers at Syracuse University found that in bat species where the females are promiscuous, the males boasting the largest testicles also had the smallest brains.
Conversely, where the females were faithful, the males had smaller testicles and larger brains.
David Hoskens -- a British biologist who's a leading authority on mating behavior among bats -- says the study offers evidence that males in some species make an evolutionary trade-off between intelligence and sexual prowess.
Biologist Scott Pitnick led the Syracuse study, which was published in December in an online science journal. His team looked at 334 species of bats for the study.
On the Net:
The Royal Society: http://www.pubs.royalsoc.ac.uk
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
