Male Squids ‘Kick Ass’ at Touch of Female Pheromone

Just a touch of a female pheromone can send male longfin squids into a frenzied rage, potentially giving wimpy squid males a chance to fight for the ladies.

Whether there exists a human analogue to the pheromone, called Loligo beta-microseminoprotein, is a matter of premature speculation. But the findings do reveal a potentially fascinating subject for further research.

It’s like Popeye’s spinach. When they touch it, they say ‘let’s go’ and start to kick ass, said biologist Roger Hanlon of the Marine Biological Laboratory, who reported the findings 10 February in Current Biology. It’s a beautiful, robust response. It may be a mechanism for smaller males who have trouble being dominant to mate with females — via Wired