Sexual vs. Asexual Reproduction

Sexual vs. Asexual Reproduction

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Introduction

All living things make new individuals like themselves. This process is called reproduction. There are two main ways living things reproduce: asexual reproduction and sexual reproduction. Both help living things survive, but they are very different.

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Comparison Table

Feature	Asexual Reproduction	Sexual Reproduction
Parents	Only one parent	Usually two parents (male and female)
How it happens	Parent makes a copy of itself (no gametes)	Parents’ cells (egg + sperm) join together
Offspring	Exactly the same as parent (clone)	Different from parents (mix of both)
Speed	Very fast and many offspring	Slower, fewer offspring
Energy needed	Less energy	More energy (finding mate, making gametes)
Examples	Bacteria (splitting), Hydra (budding), Potato	Humans, dogs, cats, flowering plants

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Explanation

• Asexual reproduction: One parent can make new individuals by itself. The new ones look and work exactly like the parent. This is good when the environment does not change much, but if there is a disease, all the copies may get sick.

• Sexual reproduction: Two parents are needed. The male gives sperm and the female gives an egg. When they join, they make a baby that is not the same as either parent but a mix of both. This variety helps living things survive better when the environment changes.

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Illustration (Easy to Imagine)

Asexual Reproduction                     Sexual Reproduction
    Parent (1)                                Parent (1)   Parent (2)
        |                                          \         /
   Offspring (same)                                Egg + Sperm
   Offspring (same)                                Join → Baby (different)

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✅ Summary :

• Asexual reproduction → one parent, fast, offspring are identical.

• Sexual reproduction → two parents, slower, offspring are different.