In fact, it’s not that hard to find. The authors of the research, published on December 14th in Proceedings of the Royal Society Bexplain that a classic work of dissecting females of nine different species of snakes made it possible to locate them without great difficulty, under the skin of the belly. Two clitorises, separated by a very thin layer of tissue.
The reason it took so long to find it, other than the size of a few millimeters, is that scientific research on the reproductive organs of reptiles has historically focused much more on males than females. A “prejudice” also found, up to a relatively recent date, in the study of mammals, including humans. The theme of female genitalia it’s always been “an immense taboo”, the researchers comment.
It has long been known that several species of reptiles, including snakes, have two penises—the pair is called a hemipenis—but it took until 1995 for a hemiclitoris to be discovered for the first time in a female monitor lizard.
The presence of nerves and erectile tissue, which can swell with blood flow, even suggests that a feeling of pleasure is possible during mating. Another aspect of snake life rarely addressed in biology…
