Humans have kept a substantial amount of hair in our most private places, including our butt cracks, despite being the least hirsute hominid. While the hair on our heads, in our armpits, and around our sexy bits serves a variety of clear roles, experts still stumped as to why our backsides are bewhiskered. To throw some light on the riddle, SciShow dispatched a crack team of detectives to the scene, revealing their findings in a video that has already received over 4 million views from individuals who plainly want to know why they have hair on their rear. Unfortunately, there is relatively little scientific investigation on the issue, so we can only hypothesize about the function of our tufted tail ends.
According to one view, humans have butt hair for no other reason than there is no significant evolutionary pressure against it. In other words, hair around the anus does not appear to limit our ability to pass on our genes, and having less fuzz on one’s buttocks does not appear to provide any reproductive benefits. Butt hair, according to this theory, has no evolutionary purpose and only exists because there has never been a reason for humans to shed it. This is wonderful news for anyone who is self-conscious about his or her downy derriere, because it emphasizes the fact that butt hair has never been a barrier to mating success in our evolutionary history.
Another theory for our posterior mustache is that hair aids in the amplification of our anal aroma. Although most contemporary humans would not aspire to this level of intelligence, it is possible that early hominins employed smell as a primary way of communication. As a result, having the ability to broadcast one’s odor across great distances would have provided a variety of benefits, allowing our ancestors to mark their territory and attract mates. Hair aids this by trapping oily secretions that transmit scents, as well as creating a habitat for bacteria to digest these oils and produce more odors.
Meanwhile, a third and final idea claims that butt hair helps us move about by reducing friction and chafing. Hairs keep our fissures properly lubricated, keeping us from discomfort and rashes, by retaining the aforementioned smelly oils. While none of these theories has thoroughly investigated, it appears that bum hair can exist for a variety of causes, so there is no need to discourage by your unattractive crack.
