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self-fertilization

[ self-fur-tl-uh-zey-shuhn, self- ]

noun

  1. Botany. fertilization of an ovum of a plant by a male gamete from the same flower ( cross-fertilization ).
  2. Zoology. fertilization of the ovum of a hermaphroditic animal by a sperm from the same individual, as in some species of tapeworm.


self-fertilization

noun

  1. fertilization in a plant or animal by the fusion of male and female gametes produced by the same individual Compare cross-fertilization
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

self-fertilization

/ sĕlf′fûr′tl-ĭ-zāshən /

  1. Fertilization that occurs when male and female gametes produced by the same organism unite. Self-fertilization occurs in many protozoans and invertebrate animals. It results from self-pollination in plants. Self-fertilization allows an isolated individual organism to reproduce but restricts the genetic diversity of a community.
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Derived Forms

  • ˌself-ˈfertiˌlized, adjective
  • ˌself-ˈfertiˌlizing, adjective
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Other Words From

  • self-ferti·lized adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of self-fertilization1

First recorded in 1855–60
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Example Sentences

Among a handful of species exist hermaphrodites capable of self-fertilization.

The researchers tried to collect additional mushrooms in New Jersey and New York, where the fungus is spreading less quickly, but they didn’t find evidence of self-fertilization.

For plants such as tomatoes and peppers, that must be done by hand, a truly laborious task, especially if the flower has to have its pollen parts removed first to avoid self-fertilization.

The new move would be no surprise to Charles Darwin, who in 1876 suggested that flowers in places with few pollinators would likely engage in self-fertilization.

Modern maize breeders have systematically reduced the effects of this constant mutational pressure through artificial selection and self-fertilization, which have exposed rare recessive variants in elite inbred lines5.

From Nature

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