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Another factor is due to the shortage of food stocks during winter as the insects are being driven away and as the result, bat hibernate in pregnant condition. [24] In pinnipeds, the purpose of delayed implantation is in order to increase survival chance of the young animals as the mother ensure that the neonates are born at an optimal season. [25]
For most species, the amount a fetus grows before birth determines the length of the gestation period. Smaller species normally have a shorter gestation period than larger animals. [ 2 ] For example, a cat's gestation normally takes 58–65 days while an elephant's takes nearly 2 years (21 months). [ 3 ]
Gestation is the period of development during the carrying of an embryo, and later fetus, inside viviparous animals (the embryo develops within the parent). [1] It is typical for mammals, but also occurs for some non-mammals. Mammals during pregnancy can have one or more gestations at the same time, for example in a multiple birth. [2]
Pregnancy rates for sexual intercourse are highest during the menstrual cycle time from some 5 days before until 1 to 2 days after ovulation. [16] For optimal pregnancy chance, there are recommendations of sexual intercourse every 1 or 2 days, [ 17 ] or every 2 or 3 days. [ 18 ]
Gestation, called pregnancy in humans, is the period of time during which the fetus develops, dividing via mitosis inside the female. During this time, the fetus receives all of its nutrition and oxygenated blood from the female, filtered through the placenta , which is attached to the fetus' abdomen via an umbilical cord .
Polycyclic animals reproduce intermittently throughout their lives. Semelparous organisms reproduce only once in their lifetime, [27] such as annual plants (including all grain crops), and certain species of salmon, spider, bamboo and century plant. [28] Often, they die shortly after reproduction. This is often associated with r-strategists.
Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring, [1] also referred to in technical contexts as parturition. In mammals, the process is initiated by hormones which cause the muscular walls of the uterus to contract, expelling the fetus at a developmental stage when it is ready to feed and breathe.
In animals, the process involves a sperm fusing with an ovum, which eventually leads to the development of an embryo. Depending on the animal species, the process can occur within the body of the female in internal fertilization, or outside in the case of external fertilization. The fertilized egg cell is known as the zygote. [2] [5]