Baculum

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Baculum

The baculum (also penis bone, penile bone or os penis) is a bone

Bone

Bones are rigid organ that form part of the endoskeleton of vertebrates. They function to move, support, and protect the various organs of the body, produce red blood cell and white blood cells and store minerals....
found in the penis

Penis

The penis is an external sex organ of certain biologically male organisms, in both vertebrates and invertebrates.The penis is a reproductive organ, technically an intromittent organ, and for Eutheria, additionally serves as the external organ of urination....
of most mammal

Mammal

Mammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose name is derived from their distinctive feature, mammary glands, with which they feed their young....
s. It is absent in human

Human

A human being, also human or man, is a member of a species of bipedalism primates in the family Hominidae . Mitochondrial DNA evidence indicates that modern humans originated in east Africa about 200,000 years ago....
s, equids

Equidae

Equidae is the Taxonomy Family of horses and related animals, including the extant horses, donkeys, and zebras, and many other species known only from fossils....
, marsupial

Marsupial

Marsupials are an infraclass of mammals, characterized by a distinctive Pouch , in which females carry their young through early infancy....
s, lagomorphs, and hyena

Hyena

The Hyaenidae is a mammalian family of order Carnivora. The Hyaenidae family, native to both African and Asian continents consists of four living species, the Striped Hyena and Brown Hyena , the Spotted Hyena and the Aardwolf ....
s, and cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises) among others. It is used for copulation

Sexual intercourse

Sexual intercourse, also known as copulation or coitus, commonly refers to the act in which the Penis enters the Vagina. The two entities may be of opposite sexes or not, or they may be hermaphrodite, as is the case with snails....
and varies in size and shape by species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring....
. Its characteristics are sometimes used to differentiate between similar species. The oosik

Baculum

The baculum is a bone found in the penis of most mammals. It is absent in humans, equidae, marsupials, lagomorphs, and hyenas, and cetaceans among others....
of Native Alaskan cultures is a polished and sometimes carved baculum of various large northern carnivores such as walruses.

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Encyclopedia

The baculum (also penis bone, penile bone or os penis) is a bone

Bone

Penis

Mammal

Mammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose name is derived from their distinctive feature, mammary glands, with which they feed their young....
s. It is absent in human

Human

Equidae

Equidae is the Taxonomy Family of horses and related animals, including the extant horses, donkeys, and zebras, and many other species known only from fossils....
, marsupial

Marsupial

Marsupials are an infraclass of mammals, characterized by a distinctive Pouch , in which females carry their young through early infancy....
s, lagomorphs, and hyena

Hyena

Sexual intercourse

Species

Baculum

Raccoon

Procyon is a genus of nocturnal mammals, comprising three species commonly known as raccoons, in the family Procyonidae. The most widespread species, the Raccoon , is often known simply as "the" raccoon, as the two other raccoon species in the genus are native only to the tropics and are considerably lesser-known....
baculum is sometimes worn as a charm

Charm

Charm or charms may refer to:In paranormal magic:* "Lucky charms" such as amulets, Touch Pieces and Painted pebbles* Charm bracelet, an item of jewelry worn around the wrist that carries personal charms...
for luck or fertility.

The word baculum originally meant "stick" or "staff" in Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
. The homologue

Homology (biology)

In evolutionary biology, homology refers to any similarity between characteristics that is due to their common descent. The word homologous derives from the ancient Greek ??????e??, 'to agree'....
to the baculum in female mammals is known as the baubellum or os clitoridis or os clitoris
Clitoris

The clitoris is a sex organ that is present only in female mammals. In humans, the visible button-like portion is located near the anterior junction of the labia minora, above the opening of the urethra and vagina....
.

Presence in mammals

Mammals having a penile bone (in males) and a clitoral bone (in females) include various eutherians:

Order Primate
Primate

A primate is a member of the biological order Primates , the group that contains lemurs, the Aye-aye, Lorisidaes, galagos, tarsiers, monkeys, and apes, with the last category including humans....
s, although not in human
Homo (genus)

Homo is the genus that includes anatomically modern humanss and their close relatives. The genus is estimated to be about 2.5 million years old, evolving from Australopithecine ancestors with the appearance of Homo habilis....
s.
Order Rodent
Rodent

Rodentia is an Order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing Incisors#The_Rodent_incisor in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....
ia (rodents), though not in the related order Lagomorpha
Lagomorpha

The lagomorphs are the members of the taxonomic order Lagomorpha, of which there are two family , the Leporidae , and the Ochotonidae . The name of the order is derived from the Greek lagos hare and morphe form....
(rabbits, hares etc)
Order Insectivora
Insectivora

The Order Insectivora is a now-abandoned biological grouping within the class of mammals.In the past, the grouping was used as a scrapbasket for a variety of small to very small, relatively unspecialised, insectivorous mammals....
(insectivores, including moles, shrews, and hedgehogs)
Order Carnivora
Carnivora

The diverse Order Carnivora includes over 260 species of eutheria mammals. Its members are formally referred to as carnivorans, while the word "carnivore" can refer to any meat-eating animal....
(including members of many well-known Families, such as Ursids (bears), Felids
Felidae

Felidae is the family of the cats; a member of this family is called a felid. Felids are the most strictly Carnivore of the sixteen mammal families in the order Carnivora....
(cats), Canids
Canidae

Canidae is the family of the dogs; a member of this family is called a canid. They include wolf, foxes, coyotes, and jackals. The Canidae family is divided into the "true dogs" of the tribe Canini and the "foxes" of the tribe Vulpini....
(dogs), Pinniped
Pinniped

Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae ....
s (Walrus
Walrus

The walrus is a large pinniped marine mammal with a discontinuous circumpolar distribution in the Arctic Ocean and sub-Arctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere....
es, Seals, Sea Lions), Procyonids
Procyonidae

Procyonidae is a New World family of the order Carnivora. It includes the Procyon s, coatis, kinkajous, olingos, Ring-tailed_Cats and cacomistles....
(Raccoons etc), Mustelids
Mustelidae

Mustelidae or Mustelids , commonly referred to as the weasel family, is a family of carnivora mammals. The Mustelidae is a diverse family and the largest in the order Carnivora, at least partly because it has in the past been a catch-all category for many early or poorly differentiated taxa....
(Otters, weasels, skunks) and others
Order Chiroptera (bats)

Such a wide distribution among placental mammals suggests that the bone evolved early in the history of these mammals, and was subsequently lost in certain groups.

Absence in humans

Unlike other primates, humans

Homo (genus)

Homo is the genus that includes anatomically modern humanss and their close relatives. The genus is estimated to be about 2.5 million years old, evolving from Australopithecine ancestors with the appearance of Homo habilis....
lack an os penis or os clitoris; however, this bone is much reduced among the great apes: in many ape species it is a relatively insignificant 10–20 mm

MM or variations may refer to:...
structure. There are reported cases of human penis ossification following trauma, and one reported case of a congenital os penis surgically removed from a 5 year old boy, who also had other developmental abnormalities, including a cleft scrotum

Scrotum

In some male mammals the scrotum is a protuberance of skin and muscle containing the testicles. It is an extension of the abdomen, and is located between the penis and anus....
. Clellan S. Ford and Frank A. Beach, Patterns of Sexual Behavior, p. 30 says "Both gorillas and chimpanzees possess a penile bone. In the latter species the os penis is located in the lower part of the organ and measures approximately three-quarters of an inch in length." In humans, the rigidity of the erection

Erection

An erection of the penis, clitoris or a nipple is its enlarged and firm state. It is the result of a complex interaction of psychological, neural, vascular and endocrine factors, and is usually, though not exclusively, associated with sexual arousal....
is provided entirely through blood pressure in the corpus cavernosum

Corpus cavernosum

Corpus cavernosum can refer to:* corpus cavernosum clitoridis* corpus cavernosum penisThough not used today, the term "corpus cavernosum urethrae" was used for corpus spongiosum in older texts....
.

The evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins

Richard Dawkins

Clinton Richard Dawkins, Royal Society#Fellowship, Royal Society of Literature is a United Kingdom ethology, evolutionary biology and popular science author....
speculated in 2006 that the loss of the bone in humans, when it is present in our nearest related species the chimpanzee

Chimpanzee

Chimpanzee, sometimes colloquially known as a chimp, is the common name for the two Extant taxon species of ape in the genus Pan where the Congo River forms the boundary between the native habitat of the two species:...
, is probably a result of sexual selection

Sexual selection

Sexual selection is the theory proposed by Charles Darwin that states that certain evolutionary traits can be explained by intraspecific competition....
by females looking for signs of good health in prospective mates. The reliance of the human penis solely on hydraulic means to achieve a rigid state makes it particularly vulnerable to blood pressure variation. Poor erectile function betrays not only physical states such as diabetes and neurological disorders but mental state

Mental state

* In psychology, mental state is an indication of a person's mental health.* In the philosophy of mind, a mental state is the kind of state or process that is unique to thinking and feeling beings....
s such as stress

Stress

Stress may refer to:...
and depression

Depression (mood)

In the fields of psychology and psychiatry, the terms depression or depressed refer to sadness and other related emotions and behaviours. It can be thought of as either a disease or a syndrome....
.

Oosik

Oosik is a term used in Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest U.S. state of the United States by area; it is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait....
to describe the baculum of walrus

Walrus

The walrus is a large pinniped marine mammal with a discontinuous circumpolar distribution in the Arctic Ocean and sub-Arctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere....
es, seals, sea lion

Sea Lion

For other uses of the term "sea lion", see Sea lion .Sea lions are any of seven species in six genera of modern pinnipeds including one extinct ....
s, and polar bear

Polar Bear

The polar bear is a bear native to the Arctic Ocean and its surrounding seas. The world's largest carnivore found on land, and shares the title of largest land predator with the Kodiak Bear, an adult male weighs around , while an adult female is about half that size....
s. Sometimes as long as 60 cm (2 ft), fossilized bacula are often polished and used as a handle for knives

Knife

A knife is a handheld sharp-edged instrument consisting of a handle attached to a blade that is used for cutting. Knives were used at least Stone Age, as evidenced by the Oldowan tools....
and other tools. It is also frequently sold as a souvenir to tourists by Alaska Natives

Alaska Natives

Alaska Natives are the indigenous peoples of Alaska. They include: Inupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, Eyak, and a number of Northern Athabaskan cultures....
, the only people permitted to hunt the walrus today. In 2007 a long fossil

Fossil

Fossils are the preserved remains or trace fossil of animals, plants, and other organisms from the remote past. The totality of fossils, both discovered and undiscovered, and their placement in fossiliferous Rock formations and sedimentary rock layers is known as the fossil record....
ized penis bone from an extinct species of walrus, believed by the seller to be the largest in existence, sold for $8,000.

General references

Gilbert, Scott F. and Ziony Zevit. 2001. Congenital human baculum deficiency: The generative bone of Genesis 2:21–23. American Journal of Medical Genetics 101(3): 284–285.
Clellan S. And Frank A. Beach 1951 Patterns of Sexual Behavior Publisher: N.Y., Harper, and Paul B. Hoeber, Inc. Medical Books (ISBN 0313223556)

External links

Beresford WA, Burkart S. J Anat. 1977 Dec;124(3):589–97.
The San Diego Zoo's Conservation and research for endangered species projects.
– poem and picture of an Oosik