# Other species and anal sex

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/other-species-and-anal-sex/469198>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 23, 2008, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/other-species-and-anal-sex/469198 "2008-10-23T12:46:40Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 49

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**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\
**Post date:** [December 30, 2022, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/other-species-and-anal-sex/469198/49 "2022-12-30T21:10:20Z")

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> [@Chronos](#):
>
> And how do you think hormonal cues work? Hormones cause animals (including humans) to have sex by making sex feel good.

No, not necessarily. Also, although @Tristan mentioned only _hormones_, I think he likely means _instinct_ in a broader sense.

The degree to which a species finds pleasure in sex will likely be a function of factors like whether individuals have sex multiple times, and how much discretion they have for when to have sex.

If a species _must_ have sex at some particular time, with the first candidate of the preferred gender that they encounter, then the evolutionary selective pressure will just be for that behaviour to be entirely reflexive; pleasurable sensations not required.

Then, I would expect a spectrum between purely instinctive on one end and purely a choice due to conscious awareness of potential pleasure on the other, with species occupying various positions along this spectrum.

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