1.

Reproduction in Crocodiles

Crocodilians are large semi-aquatic reptiles that live in different parts of the world. Crocodiles
reproduce sexually involving both male and female parents

The mating season for crocodiles usually begins in July or August and mating takes place under water.
During mating, the sperm fertilizes the egg and develops in the female. They have internal fertilization.
They lay their eggs and bury them in sand or deposit them in mound vegetation.

The number of eggs a crocodile deposits varies from 10 to 100, which generally depends on the type of
species . Unlike frogs, crocodiles have hard, leathery eggs that enable them to protect their young.

2. Reproduction in Birds

At your home, you know that chickens lay eggs. Chickens are one group of birds. Similar to other
animals, reproduction in birds is one of the key processes

that enables birds to produce new individuals and perpetuate their species. Birds reproduce sexually and
have internal fertilization. Most bird species are monogamous but there are also polygamous species.
Monogamous is usually a mating system between a single adult male and a single adult female for
entire breeding seasons, whereas polygamous is a mating system with several partners during a single
breeding season.

Unlike other animals, male birds do not have external genital organs whereas females have a single
ovary. Reproduction in birds starts by the joining of an egg or ovum with a sperm cell in the oviduct.
The ovum which is produced in the ovary and travels down through the oviduct for fertilization to occur.
The oviduct consists of the infundibulum, magnum, isthmus, uterus, and vagina (Table 1).

Table 2.1 Parts of oviduct and functions

Parts of the Nature and Functions

oviduct
Infundibulum  A funnel-shaped upper portion of the oviduct
 Its purpose is to search out and engulf the yolk, causing it to enter the
oviduct.
Magnum  It is the longest part of the oviduct.
 Secretion of albumen: nearly all the egg white is deposited in the
magnum.
Isthmus  It is the relatively short portion of the oviduct
 Formation of shell membrane-inner and outer shell
membranes
 The glands of the isthmus produce sulfur-containing amino acids that
are important for shell membrane formation.
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Uterus  Developing an egg takes a longer period of time.
 Formation of eggshell-shell is formed over shell membranes.
Vagina  The final section of the oviduct is the vagina, which is
Parts of the oviduct Nature and Functions
separated by a sphincter presents in between the uterus and the vagina
 During oviposition, relaxation of the muscles allows the egg
to leave the uterus, and it is almost immediately laid through the cloaca.

Both male and female birds have a structure called the cloaca. During mating, the male brings its sperm
to the female cloaca, and the sperm from the male cloaca fertilizes the egg. The fertilized egg travels
down to the uterus, forming a layer of albumen around it, which is followed by the shell membranes in
the uterus Then, the hard-shelled egg develops within the female with a fluid-filled amnion, a thin
membrane forming a closed sac around the embryo.

Birds lay eggs after the egg completes its development. The number of eggs a bird lays varies from a few
to more than 10, depending on its species. For example, penguins and albatrosses lay few eggs, but
chickens and ducks can lay more than 10 eggs. The egg of a bird has different parts. major parts of the
egg of a bird are the yolk, the chalaza, the albumen, the membranes, air sac and the shell

1. The egg structure is composed of shell, membrane, Aircell, egg white, egg yolk, and the
chalaza.
2. The egg white forms 2/3rd of the whole egg whereas egg yolk covers only 1/3rd of the egg.
3. The eggshell is hard and brittle and is either white or brown, it is composed of calcium,
magnesium carbonate, and calcium phosphate. It has pores that help in the exchange of
gases. The shell has a covering of cuticle or bloom which blocks the pores and prevent
moisture loss and bacterial contamination.
4. The membrane line the shell and forms two outer and inner semi-permeable membranes.
5. The membrane forms the air cell at the large end of the cell.
6. Egg white has 1/8th of protein which is known to be albumin and the rest of the egg white is
water.
7. The egg yolk is the unfertilized embryo, it is yellow. The vitelline membrane helps to
separate the yolk from the white.
8. Chalaza's function is to hold the yolk in place i.e. at the center of the egg.

2.1. Incubation:

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 incubation or brooding is the process of keeping eggs warm with body heat while the embryos
inside continue to develop after birds lay their eggs . In most cases, the female parent incubates the
eggs, although males sometimes participate. When a breeding season approaches, the female will
develop a brood patch to help transfer heat effectively. This brood patch has an area of skin with
densely packed blood vessels that produces more heat and facilitates heat transmission to the egg.
The brood patch will disappear at the end of the breeding season. Birds rotate their eggs
periodically to ensure an even distribution of warmth. This helps the embryo to finish its
development inside the egg

2.2. Hatching:
After incubation, the embryo completes its development and hatching occurs. During hatching, the chick
develops a tooth-like structure at the beak’s tip to break the eggshell. Moreover, the chick also
communicates with its parents a day or two before hatching, with parents with some vocal sounds. The
chick then starts to use the hard tip of its bill, a tooth-like structure called an egg tooth, to break out of
the egg, and the young lose the egg tooth after hatchin

2.3. Parental Care in Birds:

One of the methods bird use to protect their young is by building nests. Birds make nests in areas that
are hidden in order to avoid predators. Some birds do not use nests. They simply lay their eggs on bare
cliffs. Birds that make nests in an open area have camouflaged eggs.While the parental care of offspring
lies on one or both parents, the length and type of parental care varies widely amongst different species
of birds

In some species, parental care ends at hatching. Accordingly, the newly hatched chick digs itself out of
the nest mound without any parental help and can take care of itself right away. Other species care for
their young for an extended time.

3. Reproduction in rat

Rat (genus Rattus) is the name generally applied to numerous members of several rodent families. The
black rat (Rattus rattus) and the brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) are among the most common types of
rats species. They live virtually everywhere that human populations have settled; the black rats is
predominantly live in warmer climates, and the brown rats are dominantly found in the temperate
regions. Giant Mole rat (Tachyoryctes macrocephalus), also known as the giant root rat, is endemic to
Ethiopia where it is confined to high altitude shrub and grasslands in the Afro-alpine habitat such as the
Bale Mountains.

Reproduction in rats is representative of mammalian sexual reproduction.

The male reproductive structure of a rat consists

 testes (singular testis),

 scrotum seminiferous tubules,
 epididymis, vasdeferens and
 penis with bacula. Similarly,

The female reproductive structure of a rat consists of

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  two ovaries, oviducts, uterine horns and vagina with vulva

Like in other mammals, fertilization of the egg occurs inside the female, and the fertilized zygotes
develop in the mother during a gestation period known as pregnancy.

3.1. Pregnancy and Development:

The average pregnancy time or gestation period of a rat varies depending on the species. The gestation
period for a brown rat is 22 to 24 days, whereas the gestation period for black rats is usually 22 days and
the gestation period for giant mole rats is 37- 49 days. After fertilization, each zygote divides and forms
a hollow ball of cells that further develops into a blastocyst called a blastula. The blastulas travel down
the oviducts, implant in the uterine horns, and begin to differentiate into embryonic tissue and extra-
embryonic tissue.

The umbilical cord, a complex system of connecting blood vessels nourishes the embryo from the
mother. The placenta transports oxygen from the mother to the embryo and removes waste from the
embryo’s environment, and the amniotic sac protects the embryo during pregnancy.

Gradually, the embryo forms a neural plate, which later develops into brain and spinal cord, the arm and
leg buds become visible, the nervous system pathways develop and the rat gives birth to hairless, deaf
with sealed eyelids offspring. Rats normally give birth from 7 to 12 offspring per litter on average , but
the number is fewer than this for giant mole rats. The mother feeds milk and, after 45 days, the young
rats are fully weaned and are actively foraging and feeding.

The age of sexual maturity also vary depending on species. In brown-black rats, the age of sexual
maturity is 3–4 months old. Giant mole rats become reproductively mature when they are 4-6 months
old

3.2. Parental care in rats: Parental care in mammals is often critical for the survival and
development of the offspring. Rats build nests to rear their young, called pups or kittens. The
pups stay in the nest built by their mother until they are weaned. The female rats care pups
regardless of which their true mothers are. If a mother dies, the other females will take over
nursing her pups. Male rats do not participate in the parental care.

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 4. The economic importance of animals (insects)
Insects have plenty of economic importance in the world. You may think that most insects are harmful
to us simply because they are pests, but they have very important benefits for human beings and the
ecosystem. Insects are the most diverse animals in the world. They have both positive and negative
impacts on our economy, our lives, and the ecosystem. While there are many harmful pests, there are
also beneficial insects.

The following section provides some descriptions of the beneficial, or useful and harmful aspects of
insects in agriculture, food, industry, health, and medicine.

4.1. Beneficial aspects of insects

4.1.1. Agriculture
One of the major activities of agriculture is crop production. Regarding this, insects provide services to
agriculture through pollination and regulation of pests.

4.1.2. Pollinators:

insect pollinators are flower-visiting insects that forage on flowering plants to obtain plant-provided
food (nectar, pollen). They have the potential to transfer male gametes(contained in pollen) to the female
gametes, resulting in pollination.

Pollination by insects is an essential activity for the reproduction of the majority of the world’s
flowering plants, including numerous cultivated plant species. Many plants depend on pollination for
seed and fruit production.

For instance, an estimated 35% of crop production yielded in the world is a result of insect pollination.

This has huge economic value in the world as well as in the country.

4.1.3. Pest regulation:

Insect predators and parasitoids that attack and feed on other insects, particularly on insect pests of
plants are used in pest control. This type pest regulation is known as a natural biological control, which
destroys harmful insects that infect both animals and plants. This natural biological control plays an
important role in limiting potential pest populations.

Important insects in pest regulation include mantis, lady beetles, ground beetles, rove beetles, flower
bugs, lacewings and hover flies.

For example,

 Stagmomantis insects, species of mantis feed on grasshoppers and caterpillars that damage
crops.
 Chilomenes, a ladybird beetle, feed on aphids that damage cotton plants and destroys scale
worms that are pests of orange and lemon trees respectively.
 Epicauta, a blister beetle, eat up masses of the eggs of locusts

Insects also play a great role in feeding on unwanted weeds, creating channels for smaller organisms
water, air, and roots to travel through to improve soil aeration. Their activities can enhance the nutrient

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cycle and physical properties of the soil, such as soil structure and tilt, and decomposers can help in the
biochemical cycling of nutrients.

A.Food

Many species of insects are being used as a food for people in many countries. Evidence suggests that
edible insects have potential to become a valuable protein source for addressing the global food
demand. They are widely recognized as a sustainable source of animal protein. There are over 1,462
recorded species of edible insects in the world. Most insects are consumed in Asia and Central
America. Usually crickets, grasshoppers, beetle and moth larvae and termites are eaten there.

Being rich source of protein, grasshoppers have been eaten in many parts of the world. Moreover,
insects are important sources of food for many vertebrates, including birds, amphibians, reptiles,
fish and mammals. One of the many ways to address food and feed security for the over
increasingly growing world population is through insect farming. Insects are everywhere and
they reproduce quickly, and they have high growth and feed conversion rates and a low
environmental footprint over their entire life cycle. They are nutritious, with high protein, fat and
mineral contents and can be reared easily.

B Industry
One of the benefits of insect related to industries is their role in commercial products. Insects are being
used to produce different materials at home and in industries. The following are some of the examples.

Production of Honey and Bee Wax: Honey and wax production are considered some of the
commercial benefits of insects.

For example, the honeybees (Apis meliffera L.) produce millions of tons of honey and wax every year
around the world.

Production of Silk: The other commercially beneficial insects are silk worms (Bombyx mori and
other silk worms). Silkworms produce silk fibers, which are woven into the delicate, smooth material
used for luxurious textiles and for different purposes in the textile industry

Production of shellac: shellac is a resin secreted by Lac insects. Among the many species of lac insects,
Laccifer lacca, is the commercially cultured lac insect. Shellac is still in use as dyes, inks, polishes,
sealing waxes, and as stiffening agents in the fabrication of felt hats. It is an animal originated
commercial resin.

Production of Cochineal: Cochineal pigment is extracted from scale insects such as

Dacylopius coccus. The cochineal pigment was important for the intensity and permanency of colors in
painting. The cochineal pigment is still giving the colors in foods, beverages, cosmetics (lipsticks) and
art product.

Production of Tannic Acid: Tannic acid is a chemical compound used in dyeing goods made of
leather in leather industries, for tanning and in manufacturing some inks. Tiny wasps in the family
Cynipidae secrete some chemical and in response to this, the tree produces gall tissues that contain
tannic acid.

C. Health and medicine

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 Some insects have medicinal value in treating different human and animal diseases. Since ancient
times, insects and insect-derived products have been used as medicinal agents in many parts of the
world. . For instance, honey is applied to treat burns, chronic and post- surgical wounds. Bee and ant
venom are used to treat joints pain. Recent research confirms that bee products promote healthy immune
systems, improve circulation and decrease inflammation

Blister beetles secrete cantharidan, which acts as a powerful protein blocker in the human body and is
effective in treating severe viral infections because it prevents the reproduction of some viral cells.
Researchers subsequently discovered that cantharidan reacts with genetic material of hostile cells, and
therefore may be useful in the treatment of cancerous tumors most resistant to radiation and
chemotherapy. Several African cultures use poultices made from ground grasshoppers as pain relievers,
especially for migraines.

5. Harmful aspects of insects

Although most insects are beneficial, they can also be harmful to humans and animals. Some insects
are pests of plants, fruits, and grains in a store. They feed on several parts of green plants and crops,
such as leaves, stems, buds, flowers, fruits, and seeds on fields and in stores at home thereby damaging
crops and reducing production.

These insects include locusts, caterpillars, bugs, hoppers, aphids etc.

Locusts are among the most destructive of all insect pests. Countries have faced threats of swarms of
desert locusts. Consequently, regional and international organizations have started to monitor desert
locust populations and launch control measures when necessary.

Locusts are particularly destructive in hot and dry regions when there is a sudden increase in their
numbers. The prevalence of food shortage has further forced them to migrate. They migrate in huge
swarms, for several kilometers away devouring virtually every green plant in their path.

Some insects are also regarded as serious pests for stored cereal grains. The most common insect pests
of stored cereal grains are:

 Rice Weevil (Sitophilus oryzae);

 Lesser Grain Borer (Rhyzopertha dominica);
 Rust Red Flour Beetle: (Tribolium spp.);
 Sawtooth Grain Beetle: (Oryzaephilus surinamensis);
 Flat Grain Beetle: (Cryptolestes spp.)

Moreover, several insects serve as vectors for transmitting diseases from one organism to another or
serve as intermediate hosts for several pathogens and transfer disease from one to another.

For example,

 Anopheles mosquitoes transfer malarial parasites, “Plasmodium,” from one person to another.
Culex mosquitos spread filariasis and transmit filarial worms from infected to healthy people.
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  The tsetse fly, Trypanosoma gambiense, also spreads the African sleeping sickness to the human
population.
 The housefly (Musca domestica) spreads food and water-borne diseases to human populations.

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