UNIT 4

REPRODUCTION is the process living beings use to produce new individual

organisms or descendants (offspring).
TWO TYPES:
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Asexual reproduction: requires only one parent which produces a new,

genetically identical living being.

Sexual reproduction: requires two parents, female and male. The

descendants have a combination of the characteristics of both parents
and develop from two reproductive cells called Gametes.

The life cycle of a species generally has the same main stages: The initial
stage (starts with fertilization), the development and growth stage
(developing into an adult that can reproduce), and finally the reproductive
stage (adults).

AXESUAL
ANIMALS: (Nor very common)
Gemmation or Budding: A small bump or bud appears in the body of the
of progenitor and it grows and takes on the form of the adult (sponges)
Fragmentation: Each fragment regenerates into a whole new organism
(marine annelids)
Regeneration: Can regenerate an entire body from a detached fragment
(Starfish).
PLANTS
More common:
Spore formation: The plant produces small unicellular structures that
become new individuals without attaching themselves to other cells.
They are called spores (mosses and ferns)
Vegetative reproduction: Plants create new individuals from a particular
organ. Types:

Bulbs: Underground stems with thick leaves that contain

nutrients (onion)

Stolons: Aerial stems which root when they touch the ground
and produce new stems (Strawberry)

Stem tubers: subterranean stems with a reserve of food

(potato)
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SEXUAL REPRODUCTION IN PLANTS

Typical of plants with seeds. The reproductive organs are inside the flower,
where gametes are
produced. The flower which is responsible for reproduction has:
Female part: the carpel (pistil). The female gametes (ovules) are
produced in the ovary: inside the carpel
Male part: the stamen. Where the pollen grains form, and contains
the male gametes. Are produced in the anther.

Petals attract animals and protect the flower.

Sepals cover and protect the other parts of the flower.

Calyx and corolla participate indirectly in reproduction
In most species, flowers are hermaphrodite, they have both reproductive
organs (in other, flowers are unisexual, the only have one type of
reproductive organ, stamens or pistil).
STEPS OF THE REPRODUCTION:

Pollination: pollen is transferred from the male stamen to the female

stigma. Pollen is carried by insects or the wind.

Fertilization: When pollen grain reaches the pistil of a flower from the
same species, it develops a tube that grows towards the ovule. The two
gametes inside the pollen grain travel down the pollen tube and double
fertilization takes place:
(i)

A male gamete joins a female gamete and the zygote forms (the
future embryo of the seed).

(ii)

The other male gamete joins the other female gamete and a food
reserve called albumen forms.

Seed dispersal: after fertilization the flowers petals fall off and a fruit
usually forms from the ovary and the ovules fertilized form a seed. The
seeds are dispersed by wind or animals.

Seed germination: Seeds start to grow when the temperature, air and
water conditions are right. During germination, the new plant grows by
using the stored seed reserves until it develops green leaves to perform
photosynthesis.

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SEXUAL REPRODUCTION IN ANIMALS

Two individuals of different sex are required, each one must produce a sex
cell called gamete.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MALES AND FEMALES
Gonads: The organs that produces the reproductive cells (gametes).

Testicles in males, and produce spermatozoa

Ovaries in females, and produce ove

Genital tube: They are ducts form the gonads to the exterior that allow
for the exit of gametes.
PHASES:
Gametogenesis: The reproductive cells or gametes are made in the
sexual organs.
Copulation: is the process in which sperm from a male are inserted into
the females body.
Fertilization: Is the fusion of the male and female gametes (spermatozoa
an ove) to form a fertilized zygote.
Embryonic development: The zygote divides to form the embryo. Is the
period when the embryo develops. Its development requires a constant
temperature. The parents (usually the female) incubate the eggs.

Birth or hatching: birth is the process of expelling the new being from
the mothers body and hatching is the breaking of the egg and the
emergence of the new being

DIVERSITY IN SEXUAL
DIVERSITY
Depending on the types of gonads present in each individual, animals can
be:
Unisexual: they only have female or male gonads

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 Hermaphrodites: they have both female and male gonads, they can act
either as male or female, but they still need another individual to
reproduce.

FERTILIZATION
When the ovule and the spermatozoid join they form the first cell of the
living being or zygote.
There are two types of fertilization:
External fertilization: Union of gametes that occurs outside the female
body. Example: fish
Internal fertilization: Union of gametes occurs inside the body of the
female. It involves copulation.
EMBRIONIC DEVELOPMENT
The zygote grows and becomes an embryo, a developing organism.
Depending on where the embryonic development takes place animals can
be classified into:
Viviparous: The embryo develops inside the female body. An special
organ called placenta feeds the embryo through the umbilical cord.
Characteristic of mammals.
Oviparous: The embryo develops inside an egg outside the body of the
mother. Characteristic of birds, fish and reptiles.

Ovoviviparous: The embryo develops inside an egg inside the body of

the mother, where it remains until the egg hatches. It is typical of some
snakes, sharks and some amphibians.
DIRECT AND INDIRECT DEVELOPMENT
Direct offspring are similar to adults
Indirect offspring undergo a metamorphosis to become adults (tadpoles
to frogs). When the newborn are different from adults they are called
larvae.

THE IMPORTANCE OF REPRODUCTION

Reproduction is not an essential function for the survival of an organism, but
it is necessary for the continually of life.

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Advantages of Sexual Reproduction: Mixed traits from both parents which

increases the diversity of the species, and provide two benefits:
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Better adaptation of each species to the environment conditions.

Lower risk of extinction.

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