Content
- What are hermaphrodite animals?
- Differences in reproduction in hermaphrodite animals
- Reproduction of hermaphrodite animals
- earth worms
- leeches
- Cameroon
- Oysters, scallops, some bivalve molluscs
- Starfish
- Tapeworm
- Fish
- frogs
- Hermaphrodite animals: other examples
Hermaphroditism is a very remarkable reproductive strategy because it is present in few vertebrates. Being a rare event, it sows many doubts around you. To help resolve these doubts, in this PeritoAnimal article you will understand why some animal species have developed this behavior. You will also see examples of hermaphrodite animals.
The first thing to consider when talking about the different reproductive strategies is that cross-fertilization is what all organisms look for. THE self-fertilization it is a resource that hermaphrodites have, but it is not their goal.
What are hermaphrodite animals?
To better explain the reproduction of hermaphrodite animals, you should have some terms very clear:
- Male: has male gametes;
- Female: has female gametes;
- Hermaphrodite: has female and male gametes;
- Gametes: are the reproductive cells that carry genetic information: sperm and eggs;
- cross fertilization: two individuals (one male and one female) exchange their gametes with genetic information;
- self-fertilization: the same individual fertilizes his female gametes with his male gametes.
Differences in reproduction in hermaphrodite animals
At cross-fertilization, there is a greater genetic variability, because it combines the genetic information of two animals. Self-fertilization causes two gametes with the same genetic information mix together, resulting in an identical individual. With this combination, there is no possibility of genetic improvement and the offspring tend to be weaker. This reproductive strategy is generally used by groups of animals with slow locomotion, for which it is more difficult to find other individuals of the same species. Let's contextualize a situation with an example of a hermaphrodite animal:
- An earthworm, moving blindly through the layers of humus. When it comes time to reproduce, she can't find another individual of her kind anywhere. And when she finally finds one, she finds it's the same sex, so they wouldn't be able to reproduce. To avoid this problem, earthworms have developed the ability to carry both sexes inside. So when two earthworms mate, both earthworms are fertilized. If the worm cannot find another individual in its entire life, it can self-fertilize to ensure the survival of the species.
I hope that, with this example, you can understand that o are hermaphrodite animals and how this is a tool to double the chances of cross-fertilization and not a self-fertilization tool.
Reproduction of hermaphrodite animals
Below, we'll show you a list of hermaphrodite animals, with several examples to better understand this type of reproduction:
earth worms
They have both sexes at the same time and therefore, over the course of their lives, develop both reproductive systems. When two earthworms mate, both are fertilized and then deposit a bag of eggs.
leeches
Like earth worms, they are permanent hermaphrodites.
Cameroon
They are usually males at younger ages and females at mature ages.
Oysters, scallops, some bivalve molluscs
Also have alternationsexual and, currently, the Institute of Aquaculture at the University of Santiago de Compostela is studying the factors that induce sex change. The image shows a scallop in which you can see the gonad. The gonad is "the bag" that contains the gametes. In this case, half is orange and half whitish, and this color differentiation corresponds to sexual differentiation, varying at each moment of the organism's life, this being another example of a hermaphrodite animal.
Starfish
One of the most popular hermaphrodite animals in the world. Usually develop the masculine gender in the juvenile stages and change to the feminine at maturity. They can also have asexual reproduction, which occurs when one of its arms is broken carrying a part of the star's center. In this case, the star that lost the arm will regenerate it and the arm will regenerate the rest of the body. This gives rise to two identical individuals.
Tapeworm
your condition of internal parasite makes it difficult to reproduce with another organism. For this reason, tapeworms often resort to self-fertilization. But when they have the opportunity, they prefer to cross-fertilize.
Fish
It is estimated that about 2% of fish species are hermaphrodites, but since most live in the deepest layers of the ocean, studying them is very complicated. On Panama's coastal reefs, we have a peculiar case of hermaphroditism. O Serranus tortugarum, a fish with both sexes developed at the same time and which alternates sex with a partner up to 20 times a day.
There is another case of hermaphroditism that some fish have, the change of sex for social reasons. This occurs in fish that live in colonies, formed by a larger dominant male and a group of females. When the male dies, the larger female adopts the dominant male role and sex change is induced in her. these little fish are some examples of hermaphrodite animals:
- Cleaner wrasse (Labroides dimidiatus);
- Clown fish (Amphiprion ocellaris);
- Blue handlebar (Thalassoma bifasciatum).
This behavior also occurs in guppy or potbellied fish, very common in aquariums.
frogs
Some species of frogs, such as the African tree frog(Xenopus laevis), they are male during the juvenile stages and become female with adulthood.
Atrazine-based commercial herbicides are making frogs sex change faster. An experiment at the University of Berkeley, California, found that when males are exposed to low concentrations of this substance, 75% of them are chemically sterilized and 10% pass directly to females.
Hermaphrodite animals: other examples
In addition to the previous species, they are also part of the list of hermaphrodite animals:
- Slugs;
- Snails;
- Nudibranchs;
- limpets;
- Flat worms;
- Ophiuroids;
- Trematodes;
- marine sponges;
- Corals;
- Anemones;
- fresh water hydras;
- Amoebas;
- Salmon.
Find out which are the 10 slowest animals in the world in this PeritoAnimal article.
If you want to read more articles similar to 15 hermaphrodite animals and how they reproduce, we recommend that you enter our Curiosities section of the animal world.