Mating
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{{see also|Sexual intercourse}}
{{see also|Sexual intercourse}}
[[Image:Tortoise mating.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Tortoises]] mating]]
[[Image:Borboleta px cp Sta crz 040206 D.JPG|thumb|''Chlosyne lacinia'' butterflies mating on a flower.]]
In [[biology]], '''mating''' is the pairing of opposite-[[sex]] or [[hermaphrodite|hermaphroditic]] [[internal fertilization]] [[animal]]s for copulation and, in [[social animal]]s, also to raise their [[offspring]]. Mating methods include [[random mating]], [[disassortative mating]], [[assortative mating]], or a [[mating pool]].
In some birds, for example, it includes [[nest]]-building and [[nutrition|feed]]ing offspring. The human practice of making [[domestication|domesticated]] animals mate and of [[artificial insemination|artificially inseminating]] them is part of [[animal husbandry]].
'''Copulation''' is the union of the [[sex organ]]s of two [[sexual reproduction|sexually reproducing]] animals for [[insemination]] and subsequent [[internal fertilization]]. The two individuals may be of opposite sexes or [[hermaphrodite|hermaphroditic]], as is the case with, for example, [[snail]]s.
In some [[Terrestrial animal|terrestrial]] [[arthropod]]s, including [[insect]]s representing [[Basal (phylogenetics)|basal]] (primitive) [[phylogeny|phylogenetic]] clades, the male deposits [[spermatozoon|spermatozoa]] on the substrate, sometimes stored within a special structure, and [[courtship]] involves inducing the female to take up the sperm package into her genital opening; there is no actual copulation. In groups such as [[dragonflies]] and many [[spider]]s, males extrude sperm into secondary copulatory structures removed from their genital opening, which are then used to inseminate the female (in dragonflies, it is a set of modified [[sternite]]s on the second abdominal segment; in spiders, it is the male [[pedipalp]]s). In advanced groups of insects, the male uses its [[aedeagus]], a structure formed from the terminal segments of the abdomen, to deposit sperm directly (though sometimes in a capsule called a "[[spermatophore]]") into the female's reproductive tract.
Many other animals reproduce sexually with external fertilization, including many [[primitive (biology)|basal]] [[vertebrate]]s. Many vertebrates (such as [[reptile]]s, some [[fish]], and most [[bird]]s) reproduce with internal fertilization through [[cloaca]]l copulation (see also [[hemipenis]]), while [[mammal]]s copulate [[vagina]]lly.
{{See also|Animal sexuality}}
In [[human]]s, unlike most animals,{{Fact|date=April 2008}} copulation may or may not be related to reproduction. In most cases people copulate for pleasure; this behaviour is also seen in some animal species, for example [[chimpanzee]]s and especially [[bonobo#sexual social behavior|bonobo]]s are known to copulate when the female is not fertile, presumably for pleasure, which in turn strengthens social bonds. See also [[sexual intercourse]] and [[human sexual behavior]].
{{See also|Human sexuality}}
Like in animals, mating in other eukaryotes, such as [[plant]]s and [[fungus|fungi]], denotes sexual conjugation. However, in vascular plants this is mostly achieved without physical contact between mating individuals (see [[pollination]]), and in some cases, e.g., in fungi no distinguishable male or female organs exist (see [[isogamy]]); however, [[mating type]]s in some fungal species are somewhat analogous to [[sexual dimorphism]] in animals, and determine whether or not two individual isolates can mate.
{{See also|Plant sexuality}}
==See also==
{{Commons|Animal sex}}
{{Col-begin}}
{{Col-1-of-2}}
;General:
*[[Animal husbandry]]
*[[Animal sexuality]]
*[[Biological attraction]]
*[[Evolution of sex]]
*[[Lordosis behavior]]
*[[Mating system]]
*[[Reproduction]]
*[[Sexual arousal]]
*[[sexual conflict]]
*[[Sex determination system]]
*[[Heterosexuality]]
{{Col-2-of-2}}
;Species specific:
*[[Canine reproduction]]
*[[Dog breeding]]
*[[Horse breeding]]
*[[Sheep husbandry]]
{{Col-end}}
==External links==
*[http://tidepool.st.usm.edu/crswr/103animalreproduction.html Introduction to Animal Reproduction]
*[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/sex/advantage/ Advantages of Sexual Reproduction]
[[nan:Kau-phòe]]
[[Category:Reproduction]]
[[Category:Sexuality]]
[[Category:Ethology]]
[[Category:Developmental biology]]
[[Category:Mating|*]]
[[cs:Kopulace]]
[[da:Parring]]
[[de:Begattung]]
[[et:Kopulatsioon]]
[[es:Copulación]]
[[eo:Kopulacio]]
[[fa:جفتگیری]]
[[ilo:Yot]]
[[id:Kopulasi]]
[[he:הזדווגות]]
[[jbo:gletu]]
[[mk:Копулација]]
[[ja:交尾]]
[[no:Paring]]
[[pl:Kopulacja]]
[[pt:Acasalamento]]
[[sk:Kopulácia (párenie)]]
[[sl:Parjenje]]
[[sv:Parning]]
[[uk:Копуляція]]
[[zh:交配]]