Anisogamy

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Anisogamy is a form of sexual reproduction that involves the union or fusion of two gametes that differ in size and/or form. The smaller gamete is male, a microgamete or sperm cell, whereas the larger gamete is female, a larger macrogamete or typically an egg cell. Anisogamy is predominant among multicellular organisms. In both plants and animals, gamete size difference is the fundamental difference between females and males. Anisogamy most likely evolved from isogamy. Since the biological definition of male and female is based on gamete size, the evolution of anisogamy is viewed as the evolutionary origin of male and female sexes. Anisogamy is an outcome of both natural selection and sexual selection, and led the sexes to evolve different primary and secondary sex characteristics including sex differences in behavior. Geoff Parker, Robin Baker, and Vic Smith were the first to provide a mathematical model for the evolution of anisogamy that was consistent with modern evolutionary theory...

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