Male Antechinus Die of Excessive Mating

Scientists found that male Antechinus, a mouse-like creature belonging to the marsupial species, mate themselves to death in the last stage of their lives.

Researchers from the University of Queensland discovered this suicidal habit in the mammal. The research was led by Dr. Diana Fisher.

They mate intensively up to 14 hours with as many female Antechinus as possible. The rigorous breeding by the male Antechinus provokes stress hormones production, which collapse of their immune system and leads to death.  

"These species experience extreme sexual behaviour. Mating can go for 12 or 14 hours at a time and they have lots of partners. They use up all possible energy and body tissues on competitive mating, which causes synchronised death after mating in males," Dr. Fisher stated in a news release.

The researchers examine around 50 species of mammals, which included the marsupial species from South America, Australia and Papua New Guinea and observed that these species have a very short mating period and the male species have suicidal reproductive tendencies.

It was also found that these male Antechinus produce enough sperm before the mating season, which is followed by disintegration of their testes.

"Males stop making sperm before the mating season and their testes disintegrate, so they are not even using energy on that during the mating period," Dr. Fisher explained.

This suicidal mating is the method used by these males to compete with each other.

They remain extremely active and during the mating session because of the rise in the testosterone hormone generation in them, they hardly sleep in this period. The males who end up dying are found to have the largest testes.

"Females synchronise reproduction to coincide with a predictable spike in food once a year in higher latitudes where these species live," Dr. Fisher stated. Females not only benefit by weaning their young when there is most food, but also by promoting this extreme sperm competition, because the highest quality males father their young.

In this unusual sperm competition, the males with better stamina and bigger testes succeed, Dr. Fisher explained. If these males survive, they are unable to reproduce again.