A new study has found that male monkeys are more likely to have sex with other males than with females. Imperial College researchers followed a group of rhesus monkeys for three years in Puerto Rico and reported that 72% of 236 monkeys had sex with other males, and only 46% engaged in heterosexual relationships.
A study published on Monday In the magazine “Ecology of nature and evolution“, explores some theories that can explain this phenomenon, such as lack of enough females to show superiority over the group or even relax. But according to the site Scientific Alertresearchers believe that men who have sex with other men have an evolutionary advantage over heterosexuals.
Studies have shown that male monkeys who had sex with each other often supported their partner in fights. Also, these male monkeys were not strictly homosexual, as they also had sex with females. In fact, the researchers found that bisexual monkeys had more children than heterosexual ones.
“They form bonds and help each other in combat,” Vincent Savolainen, a biologist and lead author of the study, told New Scientist. “The idea is that if they do that, they can have access to more females and therefore have more children,” he said. And these children may be more likely to do the same, the researchers say.