Question

Give a brief account on reproduction in animals.

Answer 1

Reproduction is the process by which living organisms mate and produce new offsprings. The process of reproduction in humans takes place by fusion of male and female gametes.

Complete answer:
In animals, reproduction can happen via two modes,

Sexual mode of reproduction
It is the process by which male and female gametes fuse and give rise to a new organism. The male reproductive system consists of sperm ducts, penis and testes which is responsible for producing sperms. The female reproductive system consists of ovaries which produce eggs, oviducts and uterus.

When egg and sperm fuse, it is known as fertilization. Now, there are two types of fertilization -
External fertilization - In this, the fertilization takes place inside the body of the female organism and is mostly found in terrestrial animals.
Internal fertilization - In this fertilization takes place outside the body of the female organism and is seen in frogs, fishes, etc

Asexual mode of reproduction
In this mode of reproduction, no fusion of gametes takes place and this is majorly seen in unicellular animals and animals of lower organisms. The various types of axsexual reproduction are,

Fragmentation - In this, when the body of the organism is broken down into several pieces it grows into an individual offspring. It is commonly seen in planarians.
Budding - In this, the offspring grows out of the parent’s body and is attached to the body until it attains maturity. It is commonly seen in hydra.
Parthenogenesis - In this, the egg develops without the process of fertilization. It is commonly seen in ants, wasps, Komodo dragons, etc.
Regeneration - In this, when a part of the body like the tail or the arms detached from the part of the parent body it forms into a completely new organism. It is also a modified version of fragmentation and is commonly seen in echinoderms.

Note: The advantages of sexual reproduction over asexual mode of reproduction are,
There is more genetic variability allowing survival of species in a population.
The individuals formed have characteristics of both the parents.
The chances of survival of offspring produced by sexual mode are higher than that produced by asexual mode.