ANIMAL REPRODUCTION

• REVIEW:

Answer the following questions:

1. What word is associated with the illustrations shown above?
________________________.
2. Based on the last lesson, what knowledge do you already
have about the word you answered in number 1?
___________________________________________________
__________________________.
3. Give 3 basic examples that you can observe in your daily life
that is associated with the word you answered in number 1.
REPRODUCTION

• is a mechanism in which a parent organism produces a similar offspring. The offspring then grows and
develops until it is capable of creating its own offspring. Thus, the birth, development and death cycle
begins. Reproduction also allows the continuity of the organisms, generation after generation.
• In the biological world, diversity is where every organism has developed its own mechanism for
multiplying and producing offspring. The habitat of the organism, its internal physiology and many
other variables are collectively accountable for how it reproduces.
• The involvement of one or two species in the reproductive process consists of two forms. If a single
parent creates offspring with or without the involvement of gamete creation, the reproduction is asexual.
If two parents engage in the fusion of male and female gametes in the reproductive process, it is called
sexual reproduction.
ANIMAL REPRODUCTION
• Animal reproduction is a complex and diverse series of mechanisms that all share the same
objective: to produce offspring. It involves various physical and behavioral transformations that
are regulated by hormone output and other factors.
• They need to undergo sexual maturation for animals to reproduce. This is the point at which the
animal develops the biological facilities to reproduce. The amount of time that this takes depends
on the species. It can take years for some animals to achieve sexual maturity, but it can take far
less time for others. The wild African killifish, for example, currently stands as the vertebrate with
the fastest sexual maturation rate, taking around 2 weeks to achieve maturity.
• Sexual maturation in animals starts with the establishment of sexual organs and the formation of
gametes. Gametes are the building blocks needed for life to be formed. This is known in males as
spermatogenesis and in females as ovogenesis (sometimes oogenesis). The animal will also need
to look for a mate to reproduce after sexual maturity occurs. Despite possessing individual sex
organs, however, it is possible for an animal to reproduce without mating with a partner in certain
unusual circumstances.
 ASEXUAL REPRODUCTION

• Asexual reproduction is the process of reproduction where there is no fusion

of gametes from two parents. A single parent may produce and offspring
without having to mate. However, asexual reproduction causes the offspring
to look exactly like the parent organism. Most asexual animals produce large
amount of offspring compared to sexual organisms because there is no
process of mating and fertilization. The downside of this is that there is no
diversity in the offspring and the species because each offspring is the exact
copy of its parent. Some examples of asexual reproduction are
parthenogenesis, budding, fragmentation and binary fission.
• a. Parthenogenesis- The female’s egg develops into an offspring without being fertilized by
a sperm cell from a male. Some species can reproduce asexually or sexually, depending on
environmental conditions. Parthenogenesis helps them to use energy as fast as possible.
Aphids, for example, produce eggs which, when food is abundant, grow into normal adults
without fertilization in the spring. The eggs are fertilized before development when food is
more limited.
• For example, occasionally turkeys can reproduce by parthenogenesis, however, offspring
resulting from this tend to be less healthy than the ones produced by sexual reproduction.
• b. Budding -It is a type of asexual reproduction that is most commonly associated with
bacteria and yeast, but some species of animals also reproduce by budding. A parent
organism produces a bud from its own cells, which then forms the basis of the offspring
organism and grows into a parent-like organism. Animals that reproduce this way are
simple organisms, either without reproductive organs or with both male and female
reproductive organisms.
• Some examples of animals that reproduce through budding are jellyfishes, hydras,
flatworms, sea anemones and corals
• c. Fragmentation- It is the breaking of the body into two parts with subsequent
regeneration. A separate individual will regrow if the animal is able to split and the part is
large enough.
• For example, asexual reproduction is achieved by fragmentation in certain sea stars. A
sea star for which an individual's arm is broken off and a new sea star is regenerated. In
annelid worms, turbellarians, and poriferans, fragmentation also occurs.
• Note that there is generally a significant difference in the size of the individuals in
fragmentation, whereas in fission, two individuals of approximate size are produced.
• d. Fission- It is also called binary fission which occurs in prokaryotic microorganisms
and in some invertebrate, multi-cellular organisms. An organism splits into two separate
species after a period of growth. Via mitosis, certain unicellular eukaryotic species
undergo binary fission. Part of the individual divides and becomes a second individual in
other organisms. For example, this process occurs through the splitting of the central disk
in many asteroid echinoderms. Some sea anemones and some coral polyps also
reproduce via fission.
SEXUAL REPRODUCTION

• Sexual reproduction is the fusion of reproductive cells (usually haploid, or

having a single set of unpaired chromosomes) from two individuals to a
distinct offspring from a third (usually diploid, or having a pair of each type
of chromosome). With novel combinations of chromosomes, sexual
reproduction produces offspring. In unstable or unpredictable conditions, this
can be an adaptive advantage. As humans, we are used to thinking of animals
as having, determined at conception, two different sexes, male and female.
There are several variations on this theme in the animal kingdom, however.
• a. Hermaphroditism
• Hermaphroditism occurs in animals where one individual has both male and female
reproductive parts. Invertebrates are also hermaphroditic, some examples are earthworms,
slugs, tapeworms and snails. Hermaphrodites may self-fertilize, fertilize each other, or may
mate with another of their species to produce offspring. In animals which have limited
mobility or are not motile, such as barnacles and clams, self-fertilization is normal.
• b. Sequential Hermaphroditism
• When an individual reverses its sex during his lifetime, it is called sequential
hermaphroditism. Two kinds of sequential hermaphrodites exist. This is referred to as
protogynous when an individual start life as a female and change its sex to male. The wrasse
(reef fish) is a classic example. Typically, the largest, oldest female transitions if there is no
male present and becomes the dominant male and will begin to produce sperm within a week.
• When individuals start out life as a male and change to female, this is called protandrous.
Oyster is an example of a protandrous species. Due to their small size, all oysters begin life as
males. It will turn into a female and produce eggs as the oyster develops and reaches a certain
size.
• External Fertilization
• The union of egg and sperm that occurs outside the female reproductive tract
is called external fertilization. In most species of bony fish and amphibians,
this is common. The clasping of the male frog, as seen in the example below,
causes the female to release eggs over which the male releases his sperm.
INTERNAL FERTILIZATION
• The union of egg and sperm occurs inside the female reproductive tract during internal fertilization.
Animals undergoing this type of reproduction produce offspring in either of the following ways:
oviparity, ovoviviparity, and viviparity.
• a. Oviparity- It will complete its development outside the mother's body after the eggs are fertilized
internally. The egg will get its nutrition through its yolk. This is observed in some bony and
cartilaginous fish, most reptiles, some amphibians, all birds, and a few mammals (monotremes)
(including clown fish and blue tangs).
• b. Ovoviviparity- The eggs are also internally fertilized and obtain their nutrients via the yolk. Eggs
will, however, complete their development inside the mother. When they are hatched and released by
the mother, they are then fully developed. This is common in some bony fish, some cartilaginous fish
and many reptiles (including mollies, guppies, and mosquito fish).
• c. Viviparity – The eggs are internally developed and obtain nourishment from the mother's blood
directly from the placenta rather than from the yolk. Most cartilaginous fish (including lemon sharks),
some amphibians, some reptiles, and almost all mammals, including humans, undergo this type of
internal fertilization.
 EVALUATION:
• Directions: Identify whether the following situations describe SEXUAL or ASEXUAL reproduction. Write S if
sexual or A if asexual.
• ___1. Earthworms are hermaphrodites. Two earthworms can fertilize each other.
• ___2. Bacteria reproduce by mitosis, which produces an exact copy of the parent.
• ___3. A sea star’s broken arm can regenerate into a new individual if the broken part is large enough.
• ___4. Humans undergo copulation for the female egg to be fertilized and develop into a zygote.
• ___5. A female dog in heat needs to mate with a male dog in order to produce offspring.
• ___6. Sponges release their gametes into the water to fertilize nearby sponges.
• ___7. Sponges can also reproduce by producing a bud of itself that would later grow into another individual.
• ___8. Clams can fertilize themselves because they are hermaphrodites.
• ___9. Some turkeys can reproduce without a male fertilizing them.
• ___10. Female frogs release their egg cells in the water which will later on be fertilized by male frogs by also
releasing their sperm.