The Alternate Play, also known as Heterogony, is uncommon in animals and consists of the alternation of a cycle with sexual reproduction followed by another asexual one. There are animals that have sexual reproduction but that, at a certain point, can reproduce asexually, although this does not mean that they alternate one type of reproduction with another.
Alternative reproduction is more common in plants, but some animals also practice it. Therefore, in this article on our site we will delve into this type of reproduction and give some examples of alternating reproduction in animals that practice it.
What is alternate playback?
Alternate reproduction or heterogony is a type of procreation that is very common in simple plants without flowers These plants are bryophytes and ferns. In this type of reproduction, sexual reproduction and asexual reproduction alternate. In the case of plants, this means that they will have a sporophyte phase and another phase called a gametophyte.
During the sporophyte stage the plant will produce spores that will give rise to adult plants that are genetically identical to the original plant. In the gametophyte phase, the plant produces male and female gametes which, joining with other gametes from other plants, will give rise to new individuals with a different genetic makeup.
Advantages of Alternate Playback
Alternate reproduction accumulates the advantages of sexual and asexual reproduction When a living being reproduces through a sexual strategy, it achieves a diversity very rich genetics in their offspring, which favors the adaptation and survival of the species. On the other hand, when a living being reproduces asexually, the number of new individuals that appear is infinitely greater in a short period of time.
Thus, a plant or animal with alternating reproduction will make one generation genetically rich and the next highly numerical, increasing the chances of survival as a whole.
Examples of alternating reproduction in animals
Alternative reproduction in invertebrate animals, such as insects, is perhaps the most common and abundant example, but the reproduction of jellyfish can also follow this strategy.
Next, we will show the types of animals with alternating reproduction:
Bee and ant reproduction
The reproduction of bees or ants is alternating. These animals, depending on the vital moment in which they are found, will reproduce through a sexual or asexual strategy. Both of them live in eusociedad or real society, structured in castes where each one plays a unique and fundamental role. Both ants and bees have a queen that copulates once in her life, just before the formation of a new hive or anthill, keeping the sperm inside her body in an organ called the spermatheca. All her daughters will be the result of the union of the queen's ovules with the stored sperm, but at a certain point, when the society is mature (approximately one year in bees and four years in ants), the queen will lay unfertilized eggs (asexual reproduction by parthenogenesis) that will give rise to males. In fact, there are known species of ants where there are no males and reproduction is 100% asexual.
Crustaceans with alternating reproduction
The crustaceans of the genus Daphnia have alternating reproduction. During spring and summer, when environmental conditions are favourable, daphnia reproduce sexually, giving rise only to females that develop inside their bodies following an ovoviviparous strategy. When winter begins or an unexpected drought occurs, females produce males through parthenogenesis (a type of asexual reproduction). The number of males in a daphnia population will never be greater than the number of females. In many species the morphology of the male is unknown, as it has never been observed.
Reproduction of jellyfish
The reproduction of jellyfish, depending on the species and the phase they are in, will also have alternating reproduction. When they are in the polyp phase, they will form a large colony that will reproduce asexually, producing more polyps. At a certain point, the polyps will produce small free-living jellyfish that, when they reach their adult stage, will produce male and female gametes, leading to sexual reproduction.
Insects with alternating reproduction
Finally, the aphid Phylloxera vitifoliae, reproduces sexually in winter, producing eggs that will give rise to females in spring. These females will reproduce by parthenogenesis until temperatures drop again.
