February 5th, 2010The Power of Pheromones
Pheromones are powerful chemical substances that are produced by many animals. The response elicited by them is different in different species. In humans they are specifically used to lure a mate. In the case of small creatures pheromones play an important role in copulation, which is not the case with humans as pheromones may not necessarily lead to a sexual trip every time.
Besides eliciting attraction there are some other purposes as well that pheromones serve. In some species they are used to sense the direction of food. They are used by some animals to mark their territories, for example a dog’s urine contains some kind of pheromones that other dogs can detect and so stay way from his territory. They are also used to ward off threat; some species may secrete offensive pheromones to do so. One significant attribute of pheromones is silent communication, swarming in bees is an attribute of that silent communication. In some mammals pheromones are secreted when they are nursing their young ones. Many small insects are guided by pheromones during the time of copulation. Even plants are known to secrete pheromones.
Thus one may conclude that pheromones are indeed very versatile and powerful.
