Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with mating

Birds do it...

Guy_Inamonkeysuit — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 11:42:25 -0800

ParekeetFilter: Well, now I know that my birds (Buster and Keaton) are male and female. Having caught them getting it on a few times recently, I'm wondering what to expect! Internets don't help much, surprisingly. More after the jump... So I got these two birds this past summer. Last week my girlfriend and I caught them mating a few times. I have never had birds before, much less parakeets, so I am clueless about what to expect. Do I assume that they'll lay eggs? Should I put some nesting material in the cage? If so, what sort? How many eggs to expect? I don't really want more birdies, but I don't know what I can do to stop them. I know -- I should call the pet store and ask. But I have too much respect for the bird-brains here...

Sociological terms for dating

philosophistry — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 17:26:54 -0800

Help me find the sociological terms for some ideas related to dating. I have some ideas that I want to do research on, but not really sure where to start:

1. A term to describe the process of determining who you will approach/reject immediately. For pursuers, this is about choosing who in the club you'll hit on, or whether or not to try to flirt with someone you know. For the pursued, this is about determining who you will and will not give a chance.

2. A term to describe the winnowing process that occurs when you're still vetting a relationship, i.e. dating. For example, at what point, or upon noticing what trait you determine you stop returning the other person's phone calls.

3. A term to describe people's paradigm or ruleset. Some people, for example, have certain rules, such as, "Well, I try to search for a good guy." or "I go with the flow and let fate take care of it." or "Meet as many women as possible, eventually one will like you.

We all have these three things either explicitly or implicitly. Some are more effective or appropriate than others. I'm curious to know what studies have been done in those areas.

SpermFilter: Any reason not to give away my seed?

dhammala — Sun, 20 Nov 2005 20:00:20 -0800

SpermFilter: Any reason not to give away my seed? Tomorrow I am meeting with a lesbian couple who is interested in my sperm. They have been together for six years and the longevity of their relationship does not seem to be an issue. They have one child already and now the other partner would like to go through the process and have a child. They are very well grounded people with great educations, careers, own their home, etc. They are very open to every situation, from doing the chica-chica boom-boom or turkey baster method to the father needs no involvement at all or father can have as much involvement as he wants. Being a happy 30 year old gay man, I became excited about the possibility of having a child and what may come of this arrangement doesn't seem to scare me.

What are some pros and cons about this situation? What are the legal issues? Moral issues? If we choose to proceed, what are the best ways to ensure legal safety or to satisfy the child's development?

Even better, would you do it? Why or why not? Give me some questions to ask myself to further my introspection.

Please, I do not want this to be a place for you to post your "gays can't raise healthy kids" or "the child will burn in hell" type religious or ethical comments.

Which duck species mate for life?

Shane — Tue, 06 Jul 2004 10:59:29 -0800

Which species of ducks mate for life? My info tells me so far that most do: Mallards, Mandarins, Whistling Ducks, Maned Ducks, not to mention geese and swans. But Emperor Ducks are not monogamous? Any other species? And I've read that a surviving Mallard will "remarry" if its mate dies. Is this true, true for both sexes, and do the other species do the same?

How do you tell when a new species has evolved?

ph00dz — Tue, 02 Mar 2004 22:19:13 -0800

It's easy to tell when a species has gone extinct. How do you tell when a new species has evolved? Are there any criteria besides not being able to mate with the former species?