Advantages & Disadvantages Summary
Sexual reproduction's main strengths include increased genetic diversity, reduced extinction risk, and improved survival chances against threats. However, it's slower than asexual reproduction, requires finding compatible mates, and presents disease transmission risks during mating.
Asexual reproduction, by contrast, offers impressive efficiency—it's fast and doesn't require a mate, which can be especially beneficial in stable environments or when mates are scarce. The offspring receive 100% of the parent's genes rather than just half, and there's no disease risk from mating. The significant drawback, however, is increased extinction vulnerability due to lack of genetic variation.
When examining diagrams of reproduction methods, remember that sexual reproduction typically shows genetic material from two parents combining, while asexual reproduction shows offspring developing from a single parent.
Test Tip: When answering questions about reproduction methods, focus on genetic diversity as the key advantage of sexual reproduction and speed as the main benefit of asexual reproduction!