# Why hermaphrodites?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-hermaphrodites/398697>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 4, 2007, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-hermaphrodites/398697 "2007-04-04T11:43:34Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-hermaphrodites/398697/21 "2007-04-04T21:40:39Z")

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[QUOTE=Colibri]  
Why sex itself exists is pretty well understood: the shuffling of genetic combinations produced by sexual reproduction enables species to adjust to changing conditions.  
[/QUOTE]

How’s the evidence looking for the hypothesis that the big usefulness of sex is to thwart parasites?

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2007, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-hermaphrodites/398697/22 "2007-04-04T21:44:22Z")

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[QUOTE=chorpler]  
How’s the evidence looking for the hypothesis that the big usefulness of sex is to thwart parasites?  
[/QUOTE]

I don’t follow the literature that closely to say in detail, but that’s certainly one of the potential advantages.

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