During sexual reproduction, male and female gametes fuse to form zygotes, which develop into offspring that inherit traits from each parent.
Organisms that produce both types of gametes are called hermaphrodites. Male plants and animals produce smaller gametes (spermatozoa, sperm) while females produce larger ones ( ova, often called egg cells). Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male gametes or female ones. For other uses, see Sex (disambiguation).
This article is about sex in sexually reproducing organisms.
