Sure! You mentioned wolves and the alpha pair are very likely to be the ones to get the "prize". In the case of lions or hyenas, it's usually a female, but there are some group hunting predators where the male might get the balls. Wolves, African wild hunting dogs, and dholes from India to name a few. Wild dogs are also very specific in going for the soft bits, here is a link to a male dog on a male impala eating his nuts....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oY9ESFeOf4U

Interestingly, these predators (which are male dominated) are not doing very well population wise, and are endangered species, while lions and hyena (in which the [SPAM] are female based) are doing quite well. I'll leave it to others to draw any conclusions from that point. :lol:

Forgive my ignorance, but is African wild dog an endangered species? I think they're harder to get endangered than larger predators like lions and cheetahs.
And male predators really attack the balls of the prey! So except for that they're "hard core SM gay"(which is impossible), you can only assume it's a stratagy for hunting.

Unfortunately, wild dogs are very, very endangered. Many factors are causing this. Rabies, Canine distemper and human interferance and encroachment. The disease's are coming from domestic dogs for the most part, and even if the dogs are within park boundries, the dieseses catch up to them. Also, any time the dogs get near people, they are immediatly killed off by the use of poison baits.

Zennie, If you don't believe how sweet males nuts are, you're welcome to take a nibble of mine... but gentle please.. :P :lol: ;) :devil2:

My 2 bits worth. Firstly, hyhena are not hermaphrodites. The females have lots of testosterone to enable them to survive in a tough world. This means that they have male genetalia, but these are not functional. They are basically pseudo genetalia - they look like the real thing but are not. A hermaphrodite is self-fertilizing. A hyhena is not. There is a lot of new science being done on these animals that dispel these old myths (just as it was thought that crocodiles eat their young when they actually transport them to safety in their mouths).

Secondly, the issue of the lionesses. I have grown up in Africa and spent many years in the bush. I have seen many kills. There are basic laws of nature at work in all. Bottom line is that the attacker will always limit their personal risk and maximize their potential gain. The animal being attacked will invariably be sick or old. These are singled out of the herd and brought down. In almost all cases they are brought down with a bite to the throat, blocking off the flow of air into the lungs. To do anything else endangers the attacking animal. Remember, in Africa, if you are not 100% healthy you are hyhena food...... This includes lions. They cannot afford to be injured by horns or flailing hooves. Injury means death on the African savannah.

Now about the nuts stuff. The predator has a problem when they bring down the prey. They are tired and immediately at the mercy of scavengers - hyhena for example. So they eat fast and go for the softest flesh. This is often the rump or the thigh. I have never seen them ever go for the genitals.

This from a bushman with a few years of direct experience.....

Enjoy.

Quizzie

Quizzie I have no doubt about your knowledge about african bush. But I strongly recomand that you should see that video clip on Youtube, by requesting the file,,,,,solo hyena kills wildbeast,, My description is very accurate and the single female hyena is bringing down the wildbeast exlusivly by his testicles , and the hanging exposed penis after the protective pouch was already eaten whyle the beast is still trying to fight the hyena of,
cheers zennie

You need to do some more observation my friend :P When you say things such as "the animal being attacked will invariably be sick or old", it shows your limited knowledge of the subject. Lions and Hyenas are opportunists. If an animal in it's prime fails to notice them, or in a chase falls due to rough terrain, he is going to become prey to the animal attacking it. Lions and Hyenas don't care a bit if they are eating a bull in his prime or a bull that has three legs....it just doesn't matter. The facts do not bear out the "old and sick" theory...as nice and tidy as it sounds.

Yes, lions do grab the throat on some prey species, no one disputes that. But generally there is more than one lion involved in a hunt. While one lion holds the animal down by the throat, the others are grabbing hold and in most instances the genitals are a favorite target.....look at the videos! In the case of buffalo a throat hold is rarely used until _after_ the animal is down. They bring such a big animal down with shear weight and sometimes bites to the hocks and the base of the tail. If watching the videos doesn't convince you that the genitals are often a target, if you don't believe your own eyes when seeing these video's, there is a wealth of first hand descriptions by naturalists such as George Schaller, Hans Kruuk, Kim Wolhuter, and Joy Adamson among others. Do they _always_ do this? Definately not. In fact, if one were to ever use the words "always" or "never" or "invariably" in a description of natural behavior, I can guarantee they will _always_ be wrong. There is an exception to every rule in nature.

I'll have to re-read the thread, but I don't recall anyone in _this_ thread indicating that hyenas are hermaphrodites. They have a pseudo penis and it functions the way it is supposed to function. It is a social tool the females use in bonding ceremonies in which two animals stand nose to tail and lick one anothers "penis". It even erects as a male penis does, and they apparently find it very pleasurable (because they will perform this ceremony alot and often for 45 minutes or more). The psuedo penis _function_ is to be used as a way for hyenas to remain as a cohesive, cooperating hunting unit. But no, they can't self impregnate and I don't think anyone said as much.

Enjoy