Animal fathers, as a rule, range from the absentee to the progenophagous. (Yes, that’s right…if given the chance, some will eat their own offspring, though probably not on purpose.)
However, in some species, the male is a true pater familias, working in concert with his mate to ensure the survival of his spawn. In a few cases, the male is the sole caretaker; the female heads for the hills soon after she pops out the last egg.
In honor of Father’s Day in the United States this Sunday, take a look at some of these paragons of paternity in the videos below.
Britannica says of the creature’s strange reproductive habits:
After an elaborate courtship, the female uses an ovipositor (egg duct) to place her eggs into a brood pouch located at the base of the male’s tail where the eggs are later fertilized. Depending on the species, the eggs remain in the pouch between 10 days and 6 weeks. During this time the male nurtures the developing young by regulating the chemistry of the fluid inside the pouch, slowly transforming it from that of his internal body fluids to that of salt water as pregnancy progresses. To nourish the growing young, the male also produces inorganic compounds and releases the hormone prolactin, which helps break down the proteins contributed by the female. Once the eggs hatch, the male convulses his body and expels the young through a single opening in the pouch. The young are miniature versions of their parents that receive no further care.
La Leche League ain’t got nothin’ on this pair. Both the mother and the father discus fish “nurse” the young.
Discus fish have an unusual form of parental care: the adults secrete a mucuslike substance onto their skin that provides nourishment for the young. Some reports indicate that both parents are involved in the care of the young, taking turns “nursing the babies.”
These male dung beetles sure bring home the bacon. Of course, in this case the “bacon” has been predigested.
A powerful image to be sure…Britannica notes:
The sacred scarab of ancient Egypt (Scarabaeus sacer), found in many paintings and jewelry, is a dung beetle. Egyptian cosmogony includes the scarab beetle rolling its ball of dung with the ball representing the Earth and the beetle the Sun.
The female giant water bug (Lethocerus americanus?) has figured out a fool-proof way to ensure that her mate takes care of their eggs.
She forcefully glues them to his back, where they remain until they hatch.
Talk about helicopter parenting. The male hornbill walls his mate and their offspring into their nest and feeds them through a tiny crack. Effective, though all of that light deprivation can’t be good for post-partum depression.
Hornbills nest in cavities, usually in large trees. In all species except the two ground hornbills (Bucorvus), the male walls the female in the nest, closing the hole with mud, except for a small opening through which he passes food. After the eggs hatch, the female breaks out, but the young may be walled in again.