REPRODUCTIVE CYCLE OR STAGES OF PREGNANCY

1. COPULATION
Copulation is sexual intercourse between a male and a female

2. EJACULATION
During sexual intercourse the erect penis is inserted in the female vagina and then a
sperm or semen is released, this is called ejaculation

3. OVULATION
Once a month, one of the ovaries releases one mature ovum (eggs) into the oviduct..
This process is called ovulation. This is in preparation for the possible implantation
of a fertilised egg.

4. NO CONCEPTION (MENSTRUATION)
When there is no fertilised egg cell (zygote) to implant in the uterus, the thick layer
of blood and tissue is no longer needed. It is passed out through the vagina during
menstruation. (A zygote is an egg that has received a sperm)

5. FERTILISATION
After ejaculation into the vagina, the sperm swim into the cervix and through the
uterus to the Fallopian tube. When an egg meets a sperm or semen this process is
called fertilisation and it takes place in the outer part of the fallopian tube, and not in
the uterus or vagina

6. EMBRYO
Pregnancy begins the moment the female egg cell is fertilised by the male sperm
cell. This is then called a zygote. The zygote will then start to divide and grow as it
moves down the fallopian tube. It will then implant in the uterus lining, where it will
continue to grow. The fertilised egg is now called an embryo.

7. GROWTH
The fertilised egg that is called an embryo will undergoes cell division over and over
again, this is how an embryo grows and becomes a baby. The embryo during growth
can receive food and oxygen and remove its wastes through the umbilical cord and
placenta.

8. GESTATION PERIOD (PREGNANCY)

In humans, pregnancy is about 40 weeks (9 months). We call this the gestation
period.
9. BIRTH
Towards the end of the pregnancy, the uterus starts to contract. This pushes the
head of the foetus (unborn baby) into the vagina (birth canal). After the head has
appeared the rest of the body comes out quite quickly. The last to come out is the
placenta.