Menopause, experts rely on the world of killer whales to find out more. In fact, killer whales are among the very few living beings that enter menopause. This particular condition of life in fact concerns only the females of the cetaceans called pilot whales, the killer whales themselves and the human species.
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Menopause, to find out more, experts rely on the world of orcas. In fact, killer whales are among the very few living things that come into menopause. This particular condition of life in fact concerns only the females of cetaceans called pilot whales, related to dolphins, the killer whales themselves and the human species.
What happens when killer whales go through menopause? They become wiser and they guide the family in the search for food, particularly in times when food resources are scarce. The behaviors of the killer whales made researchers reflect onimportance of menopause for women and families.
Women in menopause are the symbol of the secret of the feminine, they contain the information of the family they belong to, they can no longer produce children and, if they have any, they will take care of grandchildren and grandchildren, such as grandmothers or aunts.
Le discoveries about killer whales and menopause have emerged from research conducted by experts from the University of York and the University of Exeter over the past three decades. It was a long period of observation of the behavior of killer whales and their particularly rare evolutionary feature, which they have in common with humans.
The killer whales, in post-reproductive age, according to experts play a vital role. In fact, they manage to storing valuable information about the surrounding environment. A real help for the herd in search of food.
Experts consider menopause one of the greatest mysteries of nature, an evolutionary stage still to be explored. The females continue to live for a long time even after the fertile age, probably due to the great wisdom accumulated up to that moment, useful for the family and, in the case of the killer whales, for the troubled herd.
Let's think about it: usually living beings end their life cycle when they are no longer able to procreate. Humans, killer whales and pilot whales are the only exceptions, as already mentioned. Why then live long after menopause?
The killer whales, once the fertile age is over, would be like "wise grandmothers". The females they reproduce between 12 and 40 years of age, but they can reach 90 years. For the species of killer whales, therefore, old age is important, a rare phenomenon in the animal world that will probably tell us something more about menopause in humans. The new study on killer whales was published in the scientific journal Current Biology.
Marta Albè
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