Abstract
Besides the erect gait and brain enlargement, menopause is one of the most important biological signs that differentiate humans from apes. Though it is considered to be a commonly accepted and inevitable event in the lives of women, it is a paradoxical deviation in the animal kingdom.
It is a generally accepted fact that the basis for natural selection is the support of genes responsible for achieving as great a number of descendants as possible. Therefore it is hard to understand why in every woman the genes limiting this ability were detached.
Most animals, including human males are fertile till the end of life. The reproductive and somatic aging runs in women obviously on different tracks.
The difference between the average length of life and relatively early end of fertility is usually explained by unusual aspects of human development.