Homogamy is used in biology in four separate senses: *

Inbreeding Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...

can be referred to as homogamy. *Homogamy refers to the maturation of male and female reproductive organs (of plants) at the same time, which is also known as simultaneous or synchronous

hermaphrodism In reproductive biology, a hermaphrodite () is an organism that has both kinds of reproductive organs and can produce both gametes associated with male and female sexes. Many taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrates) do not have sep ...

and is the antonym of

dichogamy Sequential hermaphroditism (called dichogamy in botany) is a type of hermaphroditism that occurs in many fish, gastropods, and plants. Sequential hermaphroditism occurs when the individual changes its sex at some point in its life. In particular, ...

. Many flowers appear to be homogamous but some of these may not be strictly functionally homogamous, because for various reasons male and female reproduction do not completely overlap. *In the daisy family, the flower heads are made up of many small flowers called florets, and are either homogamous or heterogamous. Heterogamous heads are made up of two types of florets, ray florets near the edge and disk florets in the center. Homogamous heads are made up of just one type of floret, either all ray florets or all disk florets. *Homogamy can be used as a form of choosing a mate based on characteristics that are wanted in a sexual partner.

Inbreeding

As opposed to

outcrossing Out-crossing or out-breeding is the technique of crossing between different breeds. This is the practice of introducing distantly related genetic material into a breeding line, thereby increasing genetic diversity. Outcrossing can be a useful ...

or outbreeding,

inbreeding Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...

is the process by which organisms with common descent come together to mate and eventually procreate. An archetype of inbreeding is

self-pollination Self-pollination is a form of pollination in which pollen from the same plant arrives at the Stigma (botany), stigma of a flower (in flowering plants) or at the ovule (in gymnosperms). There are two types of self-pollination: in autogamy, pollen i ...

. When a plant has both anthers and a stigma, the process of inbreeding can occur. Another word for this self-fertilization is

autogamy Autogamy, or self-fertilization, refers to the fusion of two gametes that come from one individual. Autogamy is predominantly observed in the form of self-pollination, a reproductive mechanism employed by many flowering plants. However, species o ...

, which is when an anther releases pollen to attach to the stigma on the same plant. Self-pollination is promoted by homogamy. Homogamy is when the anthers and the stigma of a flower are being matured at the same time. The action of self-pollination guides the plant to

homozygosity Zygosity (the noun, zygote, is from the Greek "yoked," from "yoke") () is the degree to which both copies of a chromosome or gene have the same genetic sequence. In other words, it is the degree of similarity of the alleles in an organism. Mo ...

, causing a specific gene to be received from each of the parents leading to the possession of two exact formats of that gene.

Assortative mating

Assortative mating Assortative mating (also referred to as positive assortative mating or homogamy) is a mating pattern and a form of sexual selection in which individuals with similar phenotypes or genotypes mate with one another more frequently than would be exp ...

is the choosing of a mate to breed with based on their physical characteristics,

phenotypical In genetics, the phenotype () is the set of observable characteristics or traits of an organism. The term covers the organism's morphology or physical form and structure, its developmental processes, its biochemical and physiological proper ...

traits. There are social factors that enhance one's choosing, such as religion, physical traits, and culture. For instance, research has been conducted by sociologists who found that men and women look for individuals who fall under the educational homogamy he or she is in. The homogamy theory holds that when organisms look for a potential partner, they search for organisms that have similar traits to themselves. The idea of sexual imprinting plays a role in this theory. Based on whether or not an individual is a male or a female, the individual tends to be attracted to other people that have most similar characteristics to their parent of the opposite gender. This is a form of positive assortative mating, where people choose a mate with attributes that correlate with their own. According to Kalmijn and Flap, there are five places individuals could become acquainted with each other in. These five places are: work, school, neighborhood, common family networks, and voluntary associations. They also studied the five criteria that are usually looked for to decide on the status of wanting to mate. As such, the five traits are: age, education, class destinations, class origins, and religious background.

Evolutionary aspect

There is an evolutionary theory that explain that there are two specific qualities that are looked out. These two traits are male dominance and the attractiveness of the female. According to the evolutionary perspective, the purpose of mating is to procreate for the purpose of survival. It is the ones with the best features and traits that survive, a known phrase called

survival of the fittest "Survival of the fittest" is a phrase that originated from Darwinian evolutionary theory as a way of describing the mechanism of natural selection. The biological concept of fitness is defined as reproductive success. In Darwinian terms, th ...

. If there was a couple who lacked the ability to become fertile or have a child with a disease or a handicap, there is a great rise in the risk of the couple receiving a divorce. When there are traits that are found in a spouse that are not favorable, then the homogamy in the relationship decreases, and there begins to have a need for it for a better production of children.

References

{{wiktionary Pollination Reproduction