What is sexual dimorphism?
Q: What is sexual dimorphism?
A: Sexual dimorphism is an idea in biology which means that the male and female of a species look different enough to be easily distinguished.
Q: What does the word “dimorphism” mean?
A: The word “dimorphism” comes from the Greek di (two) and morphe (form), meaning two forms.
Q: What causes sexual dimorphism?
A: Sexual dimorphism is usually caused by sexual selection, which is competition between members of the same species for partners to reproduce.
Q: What are secondary sex characteristics?
A: Secondary sex characteristics are things that make the two sexes of a species different, but are not directly part of their reproductive system. They are usually traits that give an animal an advantage in terms of survival and reproduction.
Q: How do humans show sexual dimorphism?
A: In humans, one example of sexual dimorphism is that men grow beards while women do not. This difference between sexes can also include size, teeth, horns or antlers, colouring, and hair.
Q: What are some examples of extreme sexual dimorphisms in animals?
A: In rotifers, males (if present) are always much smaller than females; sea devils have tiny males who physically fuse with females; deer have antlers only on males; Asian elephants have tusks only on males; pigs and walrusses have very pronounced canines only on males; butterflies often show differences in colouring between sexes; etc.
Q: Why does sexual dimorphism exist? A: The main functions of sexual dimorphism are to improve individuals' chances for mating through mate selection, territory defence, fighting for mates using weapons or size as advantages over other competitors or predators, etc., as well as making it easier for one sex to be seen by potential mates during mating season while minimising visibility to predators at other times.
