Supposedly, a high school survey indicated that students spend about 80% of class time thinking about sex. If true, this may explain some of the grades reported. But, whether true or not, it does kind of fall in with the mind set of many biologists. Now, this isn't because their hormones rage stronger than other peoples'. It's merely that they understand that an enormous part of nature has been shaped by the drive to reproduce. Natural selection soon weeds out those genetic traits that limit reproductive success, and present individuals are the product of thousands of generations striving to produce successful offspring.
Often, scientists' sexy outlook trumps the general public's
less focused understanding. The antlers of our desert Mule Deer mean predator
protection to many. True enough, but there are more important functions, such as
intimidating rivals for the females of the harem. Fighting? Yes, if necessary, but the
beauty is that a magnificent rack often makes it unnecessary to battle—merely
displaying it threatenly is enough to make a less well endowed challenger slink away in
shame.
Contributor: Arthur H. Harris, Laboratory for Environmental Biology, Centennial Museum, University of Texas at El Paso.
Desert Diary is a joint production of the Centennial Museum and KTEP National Public Radio at the University of Texas at El Paso.