Scientists have witnessed two gay male brown bears in captivity perform oral sex on a very regular basis.
According to research led by Agnieszka Sergiel, of the Polish Academy of Sciences' Department of Wildlife Conservation, sexually simulating behavior for purpose other than reproduction is not very common in non-primate mammals. However, the sexual activity of fellatio, or oral sex, is also found in many other species and said to be an indication of abnormal behavior.
"Here, we report on a case of two male brown bears, raised in captivity since being orphaned as cubs, which engaged in recurrent fellatio multiple times per day until at least 10 years old. The roles of provider and receiver in the act remained unchanged, and the behavior itself became highly ritualized," per the report.
The researchers claim that the provider always started the contact with the other bear and got involved in vigorous penile sucking, which also resulted in ejaculation. Once the receiver reached orgasm, he would push or turn away from the provider.
"We suggest that the behavior began as a result of early deprivation of maternal suckling, and persisted through life, possibly because it remained satisfying for both individuals. This constitutes the first descriptive report of fellatio in bears, and suggests that some bears may suffer lifelong behavioral consequences from being orphaned at an early age," added the report.
The researchers observed the captive bears over a period of 116 hours and reveal that the bears got involved in the sexual act 28 times, which means once every four hours. The scientists also say that the duration of the sexual act would range from between one minute to four minutes.
The scientists indicate that it is not the first time that fellatio has been documented in mammals. Previous studies have reported that other mammals such as primates, goats, spotted hyenas, sheep, cheetahs and the Chinese short-nosed fruit bats have also been found to commit fellatio.
The scientists pointed out that previous study in the field indicated that the reason for fellatio in animals could be because of substandard living conditions. However, the latest study suggests that the bears in captivity, who performed oral sex, were kept in proper living conditions but were orphaned at a very early age.
The study has been published in the journal Zoo Biology.
