Lausanne, November 21: A rare video footage of bats having sex in church attic has helped scientists solve a long-lasting mystery surrounding the unusually large penises of serotine bats for mating purposes. The footage recorded by a Dutch retiree reveals that this particular species of bats use their large penises in bizarre way during non-penetrative sex. The game-changing moment was the first time that a mammal was recorded having non-penetrative mating, said the team of researchers from Europe.
As per reports, the serotine bats that are widely found in Europe and Africa used a "copulatory arm" during their mating. Researcher at Switzerland's University of Lausanne, Nicolas Fasel, who has been studying bats behaviour for years told Agence France-Presse that the bats' penises grow seven times longer and wider than the vaginas of female serotine bats making penetration impossible. Leopards in Karnataka Adds Bats to Their Diverse Diet; Camera Trap Images Show Big Cat Carrying Indian Flying Fox.

'Strange Mail'

Solving the enigma of the serotine bats mating was nearly impossible by the scientists until Fasel received an e-mail from a stranger named Jan Jeucken with "penis" as the first words in the subject line. Thinking the mail to be a spam he was about to delete it, but the word "Eptesicus" (meaning genus of the serotine bat) made him open the mail. He was at awe after opening the mail as it contained the video of two bats having sex that paved the way to one of the greatest unsolved mysteries.

 CBS News reported , Jan Jeucken, a retiree with no scientific background who lives in the southern village of Castenray in the Netherlands developed an interest on serotine bats and installed camera on the church attic. Fasel said Jeucken's "passion made him the best guy" to understand the bats and he was named the co-author in the study. Karnataka Forest Officials Nab Four for Killing Eight Bats for Meat in Tumakuru, Investigation Underway.

How Do Serotine Bats Mate? 

According to various reports studied by the scientists, female serotine bats possess a large membrane extending between their tail and ankles, enabling them to protect their reproductive organs. During the mating process, the males seize the females by the neck and employ their large penises akin to an additional arm to reach around and remove this membrane, as noted by the researchers. This is followed by a still embrace called "contact mating," during which sperm is transferred.

The average time for the mating session is 53 minutes which might last to 13 hours. Fasel proposed the idea that female bats might leverage their remarkably extended cervixes to retain the sperm from multiple males for an extended period, allowing them the flexibility to decide which male they ultimately choose to bear offspring with.  This process of reproduction is  also called "cloacal kissing" is mostly common in birds --  had never previously been observed in a mammal.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 21, 2023 12:47 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).