JAMES HARRIS, DVM
"Anal kiss" achieves mating in birds
 I have an odd question. A friend of mine has a female cockatoo. She has no intent of mating the bird, but was wondering whether male cockatoos have penises. If they don't, how do they mate? I hope this isn't too strange of a question. Thanks for your time.
--Steve
 Parrots do not have penises. Anseriformes (ducks, geese, and swans) do have phalluses, a penislike structure in the cloaca, that may play a role in assisting these birds to mate.
But all birds mate in a similar fashion. Sperm travels from the male bird's testes, two oval organs located between the kidneys and the lungs, down two tubelike vas deferens to the cloaca. The male presses his vent against the female's, and sperm transfers into the female's cloaca. This is called an "anal kiss".
Glands at the opening of the female's oviduct, or reproductive passageway, store the male's sperm, where it remains viable for several days afterward and available to fertilize eggs. Every time the hen ovulates, sperm travels up the oviduct and fertilizes the egg before it forms.
James Harris, DVM is owner and medical director of the Mayfair Veterinary Clinic in Sandy Bay, Tasmania, Australia. He founded Montclair Veterinary Hospital in Oakland, Calif., and has served as medical director and chairman of the board for the International Bird Rescue Research Center in Berkeley. Dr. Harris' numerous professional honors include California and National Bustad Companion Animal DVM Awards.
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