Foreskin

In mammals, the foreskin or prepuce is the retractable double-layered fold of skin and mucous membrane that covers the head of the penis, (the glans penis). It serves as a sheath to protect the glans. All mammals other than the monotremes http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761553537_2/Reproductive_System.html (the platypus and the echidna) have foreskins. This includes marsupials like the koala http://www.uq.edu.au/news/?article=2193 and marine mammals such as the whale and the dolphin http://www.doc.govt.nz/Publications/004~Science-and-Research/DOC-Science-Internal-Series/PDF/DSIS104.pdf.

Related Topics:
Mammal - Prepuce - Penis - Glans penis - Monotremes - Marsupials - Koala - Whale - Dolphin

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In females, the clitoral hood (see that article), is an analogous structure.

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