Gynomorph is a word used to describe an organism with female physical characteristics.
Mythology
In
Greek mythology and
religion, a gynomorph was a bi-gendered god with both masculine and feminine characteristics. Gynomorphs were portrayed as
effeminate young males, like
Dionysos, a masculine god who possessed distinctly feminine features. Gynomorphs retained the creative capacity of female divinities: they had cosmic wombs, but they also possessed the inseminating abilities attributed to male divinities.
Biology
In
biology, a gynomorph is an organism with female physical characteristics, whereas an
andromorph is an organism with male physical characteristics. For instance, some female
damselflies
Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies, which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Anisoptera, but are smaller and have slimmer bodies. Most species fold the wings along ...
show colour variations typically found in males. Andromorphs, by resembling males, are thought to benefit from avoiding male harassment. Some authors have proposed that this benefit is offset by a higher probability of detection for andromorphs compared to gynomorphs owing to differences in body colouration.
See also
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Androgyny
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Futanari
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Gynandromorphism
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Hermaphrodite
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 Taxonomy (biology), taxonomic groups of animals (mostly invertebrate ...
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Sexual dimorphism
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Shemale
References
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Androgynous and hermaphroditic deities
Female
Sexual selection
LGBT themes in Greek mythology