Question

Explain sexual dimorphism.

Answer 1

Dimorphism is a condition of existence in two different characteristics in males and females of the same species. Sexual traits in animals result in attaining offspring which have size, colour, and other characteristics of one of the parents. In many cases, males and females have similar physical characteristics.

Complete answer: In some animals, there is a difference in the appearance of males and females of the same species. These differences are mainly in colour, size, shape, and structure. They are caused due to the inheritance of one or more genetic materials. This is known as Sexual Dimorphism.
Some birds show dimorphism in colour wherein the female remains concealed in the colour of the nest and the male is colourful to display territorial behaviours. Some of the mammal species have larger females than males.
The phenomenon of sexual dimorphism is directly related to evolution by natural selection. For example, if the male game birds have bright colours, they are more susceptible to getting preyed on by the predators, in contrast to their drab-coloured female counterparts.
Sexual dimorphism does not exist only to access the opposite sex, but also to form many other functions like:
-In insects, the females have a larger body than the males. This helps in laying a large number of eggs.
-In some woodpeckers, the beak of male and female birds has a different size which enables them to find insects in different layers of tree bark.

Note: Homo sapiens have low sexual dimorphism compared to other species. Also, sexual dimorphism is not related to sexual organs. Sexual dimorphism is also observed in some plants.