Love is a funny thing, whether on land or in the sea, and the ways it manifests range from endearing to head-scratching. These five marine life species have some particularly weird mating rituals that are at once fascinating and bizarre!
Seahorse
While mating, seahorses intertwine their tails, swimming snout-to-snout as they change colors. This dance can go for as long as eight hours, and only comes to an end when the male has been impregnated.
Sea Hare
Sea hares are a type of hermaphroditic sea slugs. Their weird mating rituals involve forming a long chain in which they are all connected. The individual in front acts as a female to the one behind it, ensuring mass fertilization along the line.
Anglerfish
Male anglerfish are born with the impetus to find a female as soon as possible and latch onto her, or face certain death. Some species bear jaws that are ineffective for capturing prey, making attachment to the female crucial for sustenance. When he finds a female, he bites into her flesh and releases an enzyme that bonds the two fish together, allowing nutrients to pass from the female to male through their shared circulatory system, which is also how he passes sperm. He stays with the female as long as she lives, sometimes sharing her with up to eight other males.
Pufferfish
Weird mating rituals can culminate in the creation of art, at which the pufferfish is particularly talented. The male pufferfish uses its fins to create intricate, patterned designs that may take hours to complete on the seafloor to attract females. After mating, the female lays her eggs at the center of the circle.
Marine Flatworms
The Persian carpet flatworm is a type of hermaphroditic marine worm that comes equipped with two penises. When a pair of these worms meets, they wield their penises like fencing swords, each attempting to inject the other with sperm while avoiding insemination.
