For ferrets, sex is a prolonged affair. In total, the act of mating might last up to three hours. Fortunately for the males of the species, they are packing a secret weapon to help them through this daunting task.

Some modern mammals (including ferrets, mice, dogs, and even apes) have a bone inside their penis, called the baculum. The bones have evolved different shapes and sizes, from the ice-cream scoop form of the honey badger to the long thin osseous bone of a black bear. It has always been a bit of mystery as to why some species of male…

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