| Earlobe | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Details | |
| System | Auditory system |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | lobulus auriculae (singular), lobuli auricularum (plural) |
| TA98 | A15.3.01.003 |
| TA2 | 105 |
| FMA | 60984 |
| Anatomical terminology | |
The human earlobe (lobulus auriculae), the lower portion of the outer ear, is composed of tough areolar and adipose connective tissues, lacking the firmness and elasticity of the rest of the auricle (the external structure of the ear). In some cases the lower lobe is connected to the side of the face. Since the earlobe does not contain cartilage[1] it has a large blood supply and may help to warm the ears and maintain balance. However, earlobes are not generally considered to have any major biological function.[2] The earlobe contains many nerve endings, and for some people is an erogenous zone.
The zoologist Desmond Morris in his book The Naked Ape (1967) conjectured that the lobes developed as an additional erogenous zone to facilitate the extended sexuality necessary in the evolution of human monogamous pair bonding.[3]
- ^ Steinberg, Avraham (2003). Encyclopedia of Jewish Medical Ethics: a Compilation of Jewish Medical Law on All Topics of Medical Interest. Jerusalem: Feldheim Publishers. p. 350. ISBN 1583305920.
- ^ Popelka (31 August 1999). "Re:Why do we have earlobes, what are they for, since when?". MadSci Network. Retrieved 16 July 2015.
- ^ Desmond Morris The Naked Ape: A Zoologist's Study of the Human Animal (Hardback: ISBN 0-07-043174-4; Reprint: ISBN 0-385-33430-3) Jonathan Cape, 1967 . Chapter 2, page 59 of Corgi paperback ed