Home > Secondary sex characteristic
Secondary sex characteristics are traits that distinguish the two sexes of a species, but that are not directly part of the reproductive system. Some have argued that in general they evolved to give an individual an advantage over its rivals in courtship. They are opposed to the primary sexual characteristics: the sex organs. Secondary sex characteristics can give individuals an advantage over rivals in one of two ways. Either they can be used to defeat rivals in combat, or they can be used to attract members of the other sex. An example of the former is the antlers on deer; the male with the best antlers defeats his rivals, and thus gains access to the females of the group. An example of the latter is the peacock's tail; the male with the most impressive tail will woo more females than a less impressive male.
Other secondary factors have to do with the child-bearing role of the female.
In humans, secondary sex characteristics include:
- Male
- abdominal and chest hair
- pubic hair
- more hair on other parts of body
- more facial hair
- on average, larger hands and feet than women
- broader shoulders and chest
- heavier skull and bone structure
- greater muscleskeletal muscle Muscle is one of the four tissue types. The other three types are: epithelium, connective tissue and nervous tissue. The primary purpose of muscle tissue is to contract. Muscle contraction is used to move parts of the body, as well as to m mass and physical strength
- deep voiceThe word voice can mean: The human voice. A section of a choir or other musical ensemble that sings or plays the same part. The register of a line of counterpoint, including soprano, alto, tenor, bass. These terms come the section of the choir to which a
- fatThis article is about lipid molecules, for FAT see File Allocation Table. In biochemistry, fat is a generic term for a class of lipids. Fats are produced by organic processes in animals and plants. All fats are insoluble in water and have a density signif deposits mainly around the abdomen and waist (apple shape)
- coarser skin texture
- FemaleFemale is a sex that denotes an animal which produces egg cells in order to reproduce. The "egg cell" is the larger gamete). Female or Feminine is a grammatical gender in many languages. The female is one half of a heterogamous reproduction system, where
- enlarged breastmilk to feed infants. The term breasts can refer to the upper ventral region of the human torso. Alternatively the term is used for each of two parts of that, especially for women: the breasts are parts of the female human body that contain the organs thas
- pubic hair
- on average, lower height than men
- wider in hipIn anatomy, the hip is the bony projection of the femur, known as the greater trochanter and the overlying muscle and fat. The hip joint is the joint between the femur and the acetabulum of the pelvis. Slang term Hip or hep is also American slang, an adjes than in shoulderThis article is about the body part. See hard shoulder for the road segment. In human anatomy, the shoulder joint is composed of three bones: the clavicle (collarbone), the scapula (shoulder blade), and the humerus (upper arm bone) (see diagram). Two joins
- less facial hair
- functional mammary glands
- more subcutaneous fat
- fat deposits mainly around the buttocks and thighs (pear shape)
- smoother skin texture
See also
Puberty, Virilization
