Female
hideFemale (♀) is the sex of an organism, or a part of an organism, which produces mobile ova (egg cells). The ova are defined as the larger gametes in a heterogamous reproduction system, while the smaller, usually motile gamete, the spermatozoon, is produced by the male. A female individual cannot reproduce sexually without access to the gametes of a male (an exception is parthenogenesis). Some organisms can reproduce both sexually and asexually.
There is no single genetic mechanism behind sex differences in different species and the existence of two sexes seems to have evolved multiple times independently in different evolutionary lineages. Other than the defining difference in the type of gamete produced, differences between males and females in one lineage cannot always be predicted by differences in another. The concept is not limited to animals; egg cells are produced by chytrids, diatoms, water moulds and land plants, among others. In land plants, female and male designate not only the egg- and sperm-producing organisms and structures, but also the structures of the sporophytes that give rise to male and female plants.
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News tagged with females
Opposites attract: Monkeys choose mating partners with different genes
Nov 24, 2009 |
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The world's largest species of monkey 'chooses' mates with genes that are different from their own to guarantee healthy and strong offspring, according to a new research study.
Studies suggest males have more personality
Nov 18, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Males have more pronounced personalities than females across a range of species - from humans to house sparrows - according to new research. Consistent personality traits, such as aggression ...
Are female mountain goats sexually conflicted over size of mate?
Nov 17, 2009 |
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Mountain goats are no exception to the general rule among mammals that larger males sire more and healthier offspring. But University of Alberta researcher David Coltman has found a genetic quirk that might make female mountain ...
Mom was right: Why nice guys usually get the girls
Nov 05, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Female water striders often reject their most persistent and aggressive suitors and prefer the males who aren't so grabby, according to new research. Water striders are insects commonly seen ...
Female choice benefits mothers more than offspring
Oct 22, 2009 |
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The great diversity of male sexual traits, ranging from peacock's elaborate train to formidable genitalia of male seed beetles, is the result of female choice. But why do females choose among males? In a new study published ...
Fruit fly sperm makes females do housework after sex
Sep 30, 2009 |
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The sperm of male fruit flies are coated with a chemical 'sex peptide' which inhibits the female's usual afternoon siesta and compels her into an intense period of foraging activity.
Mother knows best: Females control sperm storage to pick the best father
Sep 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have found new evidence to explain how female insects can influence the father of their offspring, even after mating with up to ten males. A team from the University of Exeter has ...
What she sees in you -- facial attractiveness explained
Medicine & Health / Psychology & Psychiatry
Aug 24, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- When it comes to potential mates, women may be as complicated as men claim they are, according to psychologists.
Should females trust showy males?
Aug 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- How honest are males when using sexual displays to signal their eligibility to females?
Spread your sperm the smart way
Jul 09, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Attractive males release fewer sperm per mating to maximise their chances of producing offspring across a range of females, according to a new paper on the evolution of ejaculation strategies. The findings ...
Good males are bad fathers
Jun 25, 2009 |
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Contrary to predictions, males of high genetic quality are not very successful when it comes to fertilizing eggs. A new study on seed beetles by Swedish and Danish scientists Göran Arnqvist and Trine Bilde shows that when ...
Mate selection: How does she know he'll take care of the kids?
Jun 18, 2009 |
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Throughout the animal kingdom brilliant colors or elaborate behavioral displays serve as "advertisements" for attracting mates. But, what do the ads promise, and is there truth in advertizing? Researchers ...
Male flies: Not the world's most sensitive lovers
Jun 12, 2009 |
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In order to increase their chances of reproductive success, male flies of the species Drosophila montana try to copulate for much longer than the females would like. Researchers writing in the open access journal BMC Evolution ...
Hidden genitalia in female water striders makes males 'sing'
Jun 11, 2009 |
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In a study published in PLoS ONE June 10, Chang Seok Han and Piotr Jablonski at Seoul National University, Korea, report that by evolving a morphological shield to protect their genitalia from males' forceful copulatory attemp ...
Boy or girl? In lizards, egg size matters
Jun 04, 2009 |
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Whether baby lizards will turn out to be male or female is a more complicated question than scientists would have ever guessed, according to a new report published online on June 4th in Current Biology. The study shows that f ...
