Ovum
An ovum (loosely, egg or egg cell) is a female sex cell or gamete. Both animals and seed plants have ova. The term ovule is used for the ovum of seed plants and for the young ovum of an animal. The word is derived from the Latin word ovum (plural ova) for egg.
In higher animals, ova are produced by female gonads (sexual glands) called ovaries and all of them are present at birth in mammals, and mature via oogenesis. In the oviparous animals (all birds, most fishes, amphibians and reptiles) the ova develop protective layers and pass through the oviduct to the outside of the body. They are fertilized by male sperm either inside the female body (as in birds), or outside (as in many fishes). After fertilization, an embryo develops, nourished by nutrients contained in the egg. It then hatches from the egg, outside the mother's body. See egg for a discussion of eggs of oviparous animals.
In higher animals, ova are produced by female gonads (sexual glands) called ovaries and all of them are present at birth in mammals, and mature via oogenesis. In the oviparous animals (all birds, most fishes, amphibians and reptiles) the ova develop protective layers and pass through the oviduct to the outside of the body. They are fertilized by male sperm either inside the female body (as in birds), or outside (as in many fishes). After fertilization, an embryo develops, nourished by nutrients contained in the egg. It then hatches from the egg, outside the mother's body. See egg for a discussion of eggs of oviparous animals.
Source: wikipedia, under GFDL
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