|Are there any fairly large non-plant organisms
that reproduce asexually (fairly large meaning at
least 2" by 1")?
|Question Date: 2005-09-19|
Yes - the common California tide pool sea anemonae
can be 3" by 5" and reproduces asexually. There
are also some frogs that reproduce asexually that
are above that size threshold.
Some whip tail lizards, from the Cnemidophorus
family, in the U.S. Southwest, Mexico, and South
America reproduce asexually.They are all females
that reproduce by parthenogenesis (the female lays
eggs that are unfertilized and develop into female
lizards). They are definitely longer than 2".
First let me give you a definition: Asexual
reproduction is reproduction where the genetic
material comes from one individual.
summarized for you a web-site that talks about
There are several different ways to
involves the parent organism dividing into two new
offspring by splitting For this to happen the DNA
multiplies, dividing into two equal halves then
the cell divides. Many one- celled animals undergo
Involves the growth and
separation of a small part of a parent to form a
new organism.When animals/fungi do this it is
called Budding.Animals that undergo budding are:
hydra, sea anemones, fungi. When plants do it, it
is called vegetative propagation.
This involves a form of repair to
damaged or broken parts of organisms Called
fragmentation - when a small piece breaks off and
forms an entirely new organism Organisms that
undergo this are sponge, planarian, starfish,
black worms Regeneration is when there is a
replacement or a re-growth of missing parts
Organisms that undergo this are starfish fro
4. Spores and
Spores are packages of DNA with
a little cytoplasm surrounded by a tough
(protective)outer wall.Parthenogenesis is when
unfertilized egg develops into an adult.
example an unfertilized bee egg develops into a
male drone. Fertilized eggs develop into female
I was a bit surprised by your question, since I
don't usually think of plants as reproducing
asexually, but it is true that they can do this.
Algae (not considered true plants) can also
reproduce asexually, by fragmentation, and do it
quite well (this is one of the reasons algae are
able to overgrow coral reefs and kill them).
So, to answer your question, yes! A
starfish is an example of a largish animal that
can reproduce asexually. If a leg gets cut off of
the main body (central disc), as long as there is
a small piece of the main body still attached to
the leg, you will get two starfish eventually.
Same if you cut them in half. Some starfish can
get quite large (12 inches in diameter or more).
Sea anemones can also do this. As long as the
pieces of the original anemone contain a piece of
the basal disk (the trunk of the anemone), they
will all grow into new, whole anemones. If you've
ever been lucky enough to see a flatworm while in
the ocean, you know they can get really large. If
you cut a flatworm in the right spot, you will get
two new flatworms, both with heads and tails. This
type of asexual reproduction is called
"regeneration". Sponges produce little spores,
almost, called gemmules that are considered
asexual reproduction because the offspring are
genetically identical to the parent. Sponges can
be quite large. If you've ever been diving in the
Caribbean or the Indo-Pacific (e.g. Australia,
Papua New Guinea) there are some vase sponges that
are so large, a diver can swim inside the opening.
So there are some examples of large
animals that can reproduce asexually. Many, many
examples are from aquatic animals. I don't really
know why this is. Maybe you can think of a reason.
Click Here to return to the search form.
Copyright © 2017 The Regents of the University of California,
All Rights Reserved.