Science has just made a surprising discovery about the genitals of female snakes.

2022 is shaping up to be a big year for major discoveries about female reproductive organs, both in animals and humans.

In January, researchers discovered that bottlenose dolphins have large, S-shaped clitorises that can provide better orgasms than humans. And last month, a study found that there are more than 10,000 nerve endings that innervate female genitalia.

Now, once again, experts have discovered the equivalent in female snakes, proving the long-standing misconception wrong. Folwell and his colleagues peeled back the layers of female snakes' genitalia from nine different species, using dissection and micro-CT imaging techniques. They found that, just as males have two penises (called hemipenes), female snakes have two hemiclitores that form a triangular structure of different sizes and shapes.

The hemiclitores are triangular in female snakes.

" It is a striking structure that is completely different from hemipenes and clearly different from scent glands and surrounding tissue. The diversity between species and the presence of nerve fibers is astonishing, " the researchers asserted .

Hemiclitores were small and thin in some of the snakes studied, and they also lacked the spines or hooks found in males. But others had 'large and conspicuous, occupying much of the anterior caudal region ,' which would have been easy to spot if one had paid attention.

Folwell discovered key features that set snake hemiclitores apart. When examining tissue sections under a microscope, Folwell and his colleagues found that hemiclitores are composed of erectile tissue filled with blood cells and nerve bundles, but lack the spines found in male hemipenes.

The hemiclitores of female snakes are important in mating.

These histological features suggest that the hemiclitores of female snakes have a functional significance in mating. The presence of erectile organs with blood cells suggests that the hemiclitores are filled with blood, while the presence of abundant nerve bundles suggests that their stimulation may provide sensory feedback to the female.

This is an important finding because it suggests that snakes may use sensory stimulation to attract mates, rather than males forcing females to have sex, as scientists previously thought. However, experts also note that hemiclitores in female snakes may also play a role in stimulating ovulation or sending signals to store sperm in the oviduct .