It’s a wonderful life… span?
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
Around the world, women outlive men. But… is that just a human thing?
Enter Johanna Staerk and colleagues at the Max Planck Institute. They studied the lifespans of over FIVE HUNDRED mammals and SIX HUNDRED birds.
Results? Among mammals, females live longer in SEVENTY percent of species! But among birds? The tables turn – in nearly SEVENTY percent of species MALES live longer.
And the gap is even bigger in the wild compared to zoos! What’s the secret to a long life? Turns out, NON-MONOGAMY favors an advantage in female life expectancy!
So girlfriends, go sow your wild oats. Or birdseed! Whatever, life’s short.
Reference: Johanna Staerk et al., Sexual selection drives sex difference in adult life expectancy across mammals and birds.Sci. Adv.11, eady8433(2025). DOI:10.1126/sciadv.ady8433