Copulation

From ArticleWorld

Copulation is an act by two members of a species that unites the sexual organs of the couple with the primary purpose being that of reproduction and the perpetuation of the species. In most cases, there are distinct male and female members who together participate in the act of copulation. The male member inseminates, via sperm cells, the ovum of the female member. This results in the formation of a zygote, or fertilized egg cell. Depending on the species, the fertilized egg cell is then allowed to develop within the female; otherwise, it is then laid as an egg, external to the body. The egg or eggs in that case, are incubated and the mature hatchling finds its own way out of the egg casing.

Higher Animals

In humans and higher animals, such as mammals, copulation is performed by a male penis entering the vagina of the male. The actual act of intercourse varies from species to species. Four-legged animals tend to copulate while remaining, to a degree, in a four-legged stance with the male atop the female’s dorsal surface. In humans, copulation can be performed in a number of ways, including methods in which each member of the couple is face to face with the other. The purpose of copulation in humans and in some other animals is not solely for procreation but is also a pleasurable experience engaged for sexual gratification.

Lower Animals

Some lower animals, such as most fish, reproduce by means of “cloacal copulation”. In this case, the cloaca is a sort of primitive vagina. Insemination in this case, still occurs internally via the male introducing the sperm cell through the cloacal opening in the female. Copulation also occurs with animals such as the snail, with the difference being that each individual snail is hermaphroditic and technically carries male and female gonads.