EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Sexual reproduction takes place by two special kinds of cells-the male gamete known as the sperm and the female gamete known as the egg or ovum. Sexual reproduction in animals is the combination of the sperm provided from the male and the egg provided by the female through a process known as fertilization.

Detailed explanation-2: -Animals may reproduce asexually through fission, budding, fragmentation, or parthenogenesis.

Detailed explanation-3: -Sexual reproduction occurs in a variety of ways in animals. In some species, such as fish, the male releases sperm over the eggs after the female has laid them. In other species, such as birds and most mammals-including human beings-the male releases sperm into the female reproductive tract.

Detailed explanation-4: -The vast majority of animals need to breed to reproduce. But a small subset of animals can have offspring without mating. The process, called parthenogenesis, allows creatures from honey bees to rattlesnakes to have so-called “virgin births.”

Detailed explanation-5: -The majority of animal species reproduce sexually. Sexual reproduction is generally considered to be advantageous because it results in genetically variable progeny due to segregation and recombination events (Williams, 1975; Maynard Smith, 1978; Bell, 1982).