Scientists have discovered that a common waterbug just 2mm long has a really, really loud penis. The Micronecta scholtzi is commonly found throughout Europe, according to the BBC, but its penis is anything but common. It's quite spectacular, really. When a M. scholtzi rubs its special penis ridges against its abdomen, scientists have learned, the tiny insect can generate record-setting sounds (relative to body size) of up 99.2 decibels. In non-penis terms, that's like hearing a loud orchestra from front row seats.
The powerful penis "song" is part of the male's courtship, and scientists theorize that the outsized volume has evolved as a way for waterbugs to drown out the call of competing males. Even though 99 percent of the sound is lost when the song goes from water to air, it's still audible to human ears. For comparison's sake, the loudest animals are blue whales who can reach 188 dB, while rumbling elephants are 117 dB.
The process is called "stridulating," or the rubbing of a ridge on the penis across the ridged surface of the abdomen. You know, when it's put like that I can kind of see why the lady waterbugs like it.
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