A clownfish

Common Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris) in their Magnificent Sea Anemone (Heteractis magnifica) home. ... Common Clownfish (Amphiprion ocellaris) in their Magnificent Sea Anemone (Heteractis magnifica) home. ...

Sex change in animals

Some species are known to change sex, including reproductive functions, in special circumstances, such as the clownfish. A school of clownfish is always built into a hierarchy with a female fish at the top. When she dies, the most dominant male changes sex and takes her place. Species Twenty-seven, including: Amphiprion allardi - Allards clownfish Amphiprion melanopus - Cinnamon clownfish Amphiprion clarkii - Clarks anemonefish Amphiprion ocellaris - Ocellaris clownfish Amphiprion percula - Percula clownfish Amphiprion perideraion - Pink skunk clownfish Amphiprion polymnus - Saddleback clownfish Amphiprion sebae - Sebae clownfish Amphiprion tricinctus - Three-band anemonefish Amphiprion ephippium - Red saddleback anemonefish Amphiprion... A hierarchy (in Greek: , it is derived from -hieros, sacred, and -arkho, rule) is a system of ranking and organizing things or people, where each element of the system (except for the top element) is subordinate to a single other element. ...

Sex change in humans

Sex Change is a term often used for gender reassignment therapy, that is all medical procedures transgendered people can have, or specifically to sexual reassignment surgery, which usually refers to genital surgery only. It is also sometimes used for the medical procedures intersex people undergo, or, more often, are subjected to as children. Gender reassignment therapy is an umbrella term for all medical procedures regarding gender reassignment of both transgender and intersexual people. ... Transgender (IPA: , from trans (Latin) and gender (English) ) is an overarching term applied to a variety of individuals, behaviors, and groups involving tendencies that diverge from the normative gender role (woman or man) commonly, but not always, assigned at birth, as well as the role traditionally held by society. ... Sex reassignment surgery (SRS) includes the surgical procedures by which a persons physical appearance and function of their existing sexual characteristics are changed to that of the other sex. ... An intersexual is a person (or individual of any unisexual species) who is born with genitalia and/or secondary sexual characteristics of indeterminate sex, or which combine features of both sexes. ...

"Sex change" is sometimes also used for the whole process of changing gender role and the medical procedures associated with it. Since changing of gender role, i.e. living as a woman instead of living as a man, or living as a man instead of living as a woman, is much more important to almost all transgendered people than any medical procedures, this use is even more inaccurate. (Of course, medically induced changes and surgeries are often needed to make a change of gender role at all possible, both socially and legally. Also, they can have a very significant impact on the well-being of people having them.) To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ...

Many people also see "sex change" as factually inaccurate. [1] Sex in humans is usually determined by four factors: Look up Sex in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

• Chromosomes
• Gonads (Ovaries and/or testicles)
• Hormone status
• Primary sex characteristics, sometimes also secondary sex characteristics

Not all of these factors can be changed, however: Figure 1: A representation of a condensed eukaryotic chromosome, as seen during cell division. ... The gonad is the organ that makes gametes. ... Human female internal reproductive anatomy Ovaries are egg-producing reproductive organs found in female organisms. ... The testicles, or testes (singular testis), are the male generative glands in animals. ... Hormone is also the NATO reporting name for the Soviet/Russian Kamov Ka-25 military helicopter. ... A sex organ, or primary sexual characteristic, narrowly defined, is any of those anatomical parts of the body (which are not always bodily organs according to the strict definition) which are involved in sexual reproduction and constitute the reproductive system in a complex organism; namely: Male: penis (notably the glans... A peafowl displays its long, colored feathers, an example of its secondary sexual characteristics. ...

• Chromosomes cannot be changed.
• Gonads can be removed, but not replaced
• Hormone status is easily changed
• Existing sex characteristics can to some extent be changed; existing ones mostly through surgery, non-existing ones can be induced to grow through hormones.
  For example: Changing a male genital anatomy into a good or even excellent female appearing and functioning one is complicated, but entirely possible; changing a female genital anatomy into an even reasonably male appearing one however is extremely complicated and not successful very often; function is always limited.

See also: List of transgender-related topics Sex reassignment surgery from male to female involves reshaping the male genitals into a form with the appearance of and, as far as possible, the function of female genitalia. ... Sexual reassignment surgery from female to male includes surgical procedures which will reshape a female body into a body with a male appearance. ... Transgender is a very complex topic, where consensual and precise definitions have not yet been reached. ...