Gelatinous secretion used in the mating of some species
A mating plug in a female Richardson's ground squirrel (Urocitellus richardsonii)
A mating plug, also known as a copulation plug, sperm plug, vaginal plug, or sphragis (Latin, from Greek σφραγίς sphragis, "a seal"), is a gelatinous secretion used in the mating of some species. It is deposited by a male into a female genital tract, such as the vagina, and later hardens into a plug or glues the tract together.[1] While females can expel the plugs afterwards, the male's sperm still gets a time advantage in getting to the egg, which is often the deciding factor in fertilization.
The mating plug plays an important role in sperm competition and may serve as an alternative and more advantageous strategy to active mate guarding. In some species, such a passive mate-guarding strategy may reduce selection on large male size.[2] Such a strategy may be advantageous because it would allow a male to increase reproductive success by spending more time pursuing new female mates rather than active mate guarding.[2]
^David Quammen (16 October 2012). The Flight of the Iguana: A Sidelong View of Science and Nature. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4767-2873-5.
^ abDunham, A. E.; Rudolf, V. H. W. (July 2009). "Evolution of sexual size monomorphism: the influence of passive mate guarding". Journal of Evolutionary Biology. 22 (7): 1376–1386. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.714.2656. doi:10.1111/j.1420-9101.2009.01768.x. PMID 19486235. S2CID 13617914.
A matingplug, also known as a copulation plug, sperm plug, vaginal plug, or sphragis (Latin, from Greek σφραγίς sphragis, "a seal"), is a gelatinous secretion...
plug, plugged, or plugs in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Plug, PLUG, plugs, or plugged may refer to: Plug, an insertive closure or stopper (plug)...
forms the matingplug from materials contributed by both the female and the male; the male alone cannot make a functional plug. Most matingplugs in other...
female. In addition, males also secrete a matingplug during copulation that hinders the ability of females to mate with other males. Pregnant females look...
copulatory opening, forming a matingplug that hardens within a few hours for the purpose of preventing further matings. The butterfly breeds on plants...
reduce the effectiveness of male matingplugs. With a matingplug, male spiders ensure that only the male who creates the plug post coitus will be the father...
some pinnipeds, including South American fur seals. Canine reproduction Matingplug Howard E. Evans; Alexander de Lahunta (7 August 2013). Miller's Anatomy...
AC power plugs and sockets connect devices to mains electricity to supply them with electrical power. A plug is the connector attached to an electrically-operated...
specified in IEC 61076-2-101, is a circular electrical plug/receptacle pair with 12mm OD mating threads, used in NMEA 2000, DeviceNet, IO-Link, some kinds...
the sperm, thus fertilizing the female. A matingplug then forms in the female to prevent her from mating again before the young are born. The male and...
defensive tactics including: mate-guarding, matingplugs, and releasing toxic seminal substances to reduce female re-mating tendencies to cope with sperm...
others, such as voles, it is induced by mating. During copulation, males of some rodent species deposit a matingplug in the female's genital opening, both...
insert a genital plug into the female during copulation. Unlike in many other spider species, subsequent males can mate with plugged females by removing...
leave behind a matingplug to block the sperm of other males and thus ensure his paternity. In hibernating species, males are known to mate with females...
electrical and mechanical trades and manufacturing, each half of a pair of mating connectors or fasteners is conventionally assigned the designation male...
prevent females from mating again. What action is performed depends on the animal. In some species, the male produces a matingplug after insemination....
matingplug that seals the female genitalia after mating. This is believed to ensure the success of the male and to prevent other males from mating and...
as matingplugs, which makes future matings with a mated female more difficult. These genera of spiders also participate in mate guarding; a mated male...
copulation the male seals the female's epigyne with a matingplug, preventing the female from further mating. It has been found in China, Japan, Guam, Thailand...
Schuko plugs and sockets are symmetric AC connectors. They can be mated in two ways, therefore line can be connected to either pin of the appliance plug. As...
to mate. This is successful if she has not already mated, but usually unsuccessful if she has already mated, due to a matingplug, a small waxy plug deposited...
insemination as a mating strategy have been suggested. One is that traumatic insemination is an adaptation to the development of the matingplug, a reproductive...
Global Information