The biological process by which new “offspring” (individual organisms) are formed from their “parents” is known as reproduction (or procreation). Each individual organism exists as a result of reproduction, which is a fundamental aspect of all known life. Most importantly, reproduction is required for a species’ existence. The known techniques of reproduction can be divided into two categories: sexual and asexual reproduction.
There are two types of reproduction
1.Sexual reproduction
2.Asexual reproduction
Asexual reproduction allows an individual to reproduce without the involvement of another member of the species. Asexual reproduction is the division of a bacterial cell into two daughter cells. This type of reproduction creates genetically identical organisms (clones), whereas sexual reproduction produces kids who are genetically distinct from their parents.
In a sexual reproduction the male gamete (sperm) may be inserted into the female’s body for internal fertilisation or the sperm and eggs may be discharged into the environment for external fertilisation during sexual reproduction. The former is exemplified by humans, whereas the latter is exemplified by seahorses. The female seahorse lays eggs in the male seahorse’s abdominal brood pouch, where they are fertilised, after a mating dance. The eggs hatch, and the babies grow for several weeks in the pouch.
Asexual Reproduction in Animals
Budding
In this case, offspring develop as a growth on the parent’s body. Some species, such as jellyfish and many echinoderms, have buds that break out and live on their own. In others, such as corals, the buds remain linked to the parent, resulting in animal colonies. Budding occurs frequently in parasitic creatures, such as tapeworms.
Fragmentation
When certain little worms reach adulthood, they spontaneously split into 8 or 9 parts. Each of these fragments matures into a full-grown worm, and the cycle continues.
Parthenogenesis
Females generate eggs in parthenogenesis (“virgin birth”), but the eggs never get fertilised and develop into children. Parthenogenesis is a process that happens in some fishes, insects, and a few frog and lizard species. Because of their imprinted genes, it does not generally arise in animals. Laboratory mice have been produced using parthenogenesis, which uses unique procedures to avoid imprinting.
Parthenogenesis is the only way of reproduction in a few non mammalian species, however it is more typically used by animals only in specific circumstances. Examples:
- When aphids have plenty of food in the spring, they use parthenogenesis. Parthenogenesis is a faster way of asexual reproduction in this species than sexual reproduction, allowing the animals to take advantage of the available resources more quickly.
- When there is no male available for sexual reproduction, female Komodo dragons (the world’s largest lizard) can generate babies through parthenogenesis. Their children are homozygous at every locus, including sex chromosomes that are identical. Females create all males because, unlike mammals, females have a heterogametic sex (ZW), whereas men have a homogametic sex (ZH) (ZZ).
When wasps become infected with bacteria, they are compelled to go through parthenogenesis (in the genus Wolbachia). Wolbachia can only pass on to the next generation via eggs, not sperm, hence making females rather than males is advantageous to the bacterium. Fertilised (diploid) eggs become females, while unfertilized (haploid) eggs become males in these wasps (much like honeybees). In Wolbachia-infected females, however, all of their eggs undergo endoreplication, resulting in diploid eggs that develop into females by parthenogenesis without fertilisation. The bacteria are killed and the parthenogenesis is “cured” by giving the wasps an antibiotic.
Why Choose Asexual Reproduction?
Asexual reproduction, after all, appears to be a more effective method of reproduction. Males are required for sexual reproduction, although they do not create children. The enormous preponderance of sexually reproducing animals over asexual species can be explained in two ways:
- Perhaps sexual reproduction has remained popular because it provides a method for weeding out undesirable mutations that develop in the population, diminishing its fitness (by the recombination process of meiosis). Due to asexual reproduction, these mutations become homozygous and hence fully exposed to natural selection pressures.
- Most living organisms’ preferred method of reproduction is sex, which may be due to their capacity to adapt swiftly to changing environments.
How many modes of reproduction are there in animals
Animals and other living things do not have an infinite lifespan. If their species is to thrive, they must reproduce. But, exactly, what does reproduction imply? One of the most basic properties of life is the ability to reproduce new generations. There are two different ways to reproduce.
Asexual reproduction
The process of generating a new individual from a single parent through asexual reproduction.
Sexual reproduction
The process of generating a new individual from two parents through sexual reproduction.
Each procedure has benefits and drawbacks, but the end result is always the same: a new life begins.
Conclusion
The biological process by which new “offspring” are formed from their “parents’ ‘ is known as reproduction. The known techniques of reproduction can be divided into two categories: sexual and asexual reproduction. Asexual reproduction Asexual reproduction allows an individual to reproduce without the involvement of another member of the species. Asexual reproduction is the division of a bacterial cell into two daughter cells. In a sexual reproduction the male gamete may be inserted into the female’s body for internal fertilisation or the sperm and eggs may be discharged into the environment for external fertilisation during sexual reproduction. Asexual Reproduction in Animals Budding In this case, offspring develop as a growth on the parent’s body. Parthenogenesis is the only way of reproduction in a few non mammalian species, however it is more typically used by animals only in specific circumstances. Parthenogenesis is a faster way of asexual reproduction in this species than sexual reproduction, allowing the animals to take advantage of the available resources more quickly. Asexual reproduction The process of generating a new individual from a single parent through asexual reproduction. Sexual reproduction The process of generating a new individual from two parents through sexual reproduction.