Animal Sex: How Tasmanian Devils Do It - For the most part, Tasmanian devils are solitary animals that only come together to breed, which usually occurs between February and April (late summer and early fall in Australia).
Not completely unlike the popular Looney Tunes character, Tasmanian devils are best known for their growly, aggressive behavior — a disposition they actually maintain in the bedroom.
For the most part, Tasmanian devils are solitary animals that only come together to breed. "But they also socialize or semi-socialize if they come across a large carcass to feed on," Tamara Keeley, a wildlife reproductive biologist at the University of Queensland in Australia, told Live Science.
Wild devils in Tasmania tend to mate between February and April (late summer and early fall in Australia). Females have three estrous cycles in this period — if they don't get pregnant during their first cycle, they have two more tries before the breeding season is over. [Animal Sex: 7 Tales of Naughty Acts in the Wild]
To attract mates, both males and females scent-mark the ground, rocks and trees using the scent glands near their anus. "They drag their bums across the ground," Keeley said, adding that they also scent-mark objects by rubbing their faces against them.
Female devils prefer to mate with the largest, most dominant males. If multiple males show up at a female's door, they will battle for the right to mate with her.
But coming out on top doesn't guarantee the female's affection — a male also has to physically force his potential mate into submission. "A female will test the male to see if he is good enough for her standards," Keeley said. In fact, females are known to reject small males vocally and physically.
Once a female accepts a male, he will bite the scruff of her neck and drag her back to his den, where he will further assert his dominance by pushing and nudging her. The pair will then mate for a few minutes to over an hour.
To make sure the female has his babies, the male will guard her until she's no longer in estrous (a week or so later), before he moves on to find another mate. The pair will not eat during this lockdown, though the male may escort the female out of his den to drink water, Keeley said. If the female tries to escape, the male will chase her down and drag her back home.
As can be expected, males aren't always 100 percent successful at keeping females all to themselves. Indeed, a litter of pups can have multiple fathers, suggesting females do sneak away from their captors to mate with other males.
Not completely unlike the popular Looney Tunes character, Tasmanian devils are best known for their growly, aggressive behavior — a disposition they actually maintain in the bedroom.
For the most part, Tasmanian devils are solitary animals that only come together to breed. "But they also socialize or semi-socialize if they come across a large carcass to feed on," Tamara Keeley, a wildlife reproductive biologist at the University of Queensland in Australia, told Live Science.
Wild devils in Tasmania tend to mate between February and April (late summer and early fall in Australia). Females have three estrous cycles in this period — if they don't get pregnant during their first cycle, they have two more tries before the breeding season is over. [Animal Sex: 7 Tales of Naughty Acts in the Wild]
To attract mates, both males and females scent-mark the ground, rocks and trees using the scent glands near their anus. "They drag their bums across the ground," Keeley said, adding that they also scent-mark objects by rubbing their faces against them.
Female devils prefer to mate with the largest, most dominant males. If multiple males show up at a female's door, they will battle for the right to mate with her.
But coming out on top doesn't guarantee the female's affection — a male also has to physically force his potential mate into submission. "A female will test the male to see if he is good enough for her standards," Keeley said. In fact, females are known to reject small males vocally and physically.
Once a female accepts a male, he will bite the scruff of her neck and drag her back to his den, where he will further assert his dominance by pushing and nudging her. The pair will then mate for a few minutes to over an hour.
To make sure the female has his babies, the male will guard her until she's no longer in estrous (a week or so later), before he moves on to find another mate. The pair will not eat during this lockdown, though the male may escort the female out of his den to drink water, Keeley said. If the female tries to escape, the male will chase her down and drag her back home.
As can be expected, males aren't always 100 percent successful at keeping females all to themselves. Indeed, a litter of pups can have multiple fathers, suggesting females do sneak away from their captors to mate with other males.
![Photo: We are indebted
In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Eleventh Canto, Fifth Chapter, verse 41, in which Karabhājana Muni addresses Mahārāja Nimi as follows: "My dear King, if someone gives up his occupational duties as they are prescribed for the different varṇas and āśramas, but takes complete shelter, surrendering himself unto the lotus feet of the Lord, such a person is no more a debtor, nor has he any obligation to perform the different kinds of activities we render to the great sages, ancestors, living entities and family and society members. Nor has he any need to bother executing the five kinds of yajñās [sacrifices] for becoming free from sinful contamination. Simply by discharging devotional service, he is freed from all kinds of obligations." The purport is that as soon as a man takes his birth, he is immediately indebted to so many sources. He is indebted to the great sages because he profits by reading their authoritative scriptures and books. For example, we take advantage of the books written by Vyāsadeva. Vyāsadeva has left for us all the Vedas. Before Vyāsadeva's writing, the Vedic literature was simply heard, and the disciples would learn the mantras quickly by hearing and not by reading. Later on, Vyāsadeva thought it wise to write down the Vedas, because in this age people are short-memoried and unable to remember all the instructions given by the spiritual master. Therefore, he left all the Vedic knowledge in the form of books, such as the Purāṇas, Vedānta, Mahābhārata and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
There are many other sages, like Śańkarācārya, Gautama Muni and Nārada Muni, to whom we are indebted because we take advantage of their knowledge. Similarly, we are obliged to our forefathers, because we take our birth in a particular family, where we take all advantages and inherit property. Therefore, we are indebted to the forefathers and have to offer them piṇḍa (prasāda) after they are dead. Similarly, to the people in general we are also indebted, as well as to our relatives, friends and even animals such as cows and dogs who render us so much service.
In this way, we are indebted to the devas, to the forefathers, to the sages, to the animals and to society in general. It is our duty to repay them all by proper discharge of service. But by the one stroke of devotional service, if someone gives up all obligations and simply surrenders unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he is no longer a debtor, nor obliged to any other source of benefit.](https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/t1/s403x403/1656441_518608691584964_1419881338_n.jpg)
