The testes are located in the scrotum, which hangs outside the body where the temperature is more suitable for efficient sperm production. The testes are responsible for the production of sperm and the release of the male hormone testosterone. Testosterone controls the development of male secondary sexual characteristics at puberty, such as deepening of the voice, facial hair, changes in the penis and testicles and the production of sperm.malereproductivesystem

After boy reaches puberty, his testes create sperm at a rate of approximately 125 million sperm a day. These gather in the testes and then move on to the coiled tubular system known as the epidemiologist, where they mature. The epidemiologist drains first into the vas deference and from there into the ejaculatory ducts. During sexual activity, these ducts contract and push sperm through the urethra during the process of ejaculation.

Sperm are carried in fluid produced by the seminal vesicles and the prostate gland. This fluid, which is known as semen, is rich in nutrients and provides an effective medium within which sperm can stay alive. For about 20 minutes after ejaculation, the sperm hardly move at all, remaining in the gel-like substance. After this, the semen liquefies, and the sperm swim towards their ultimate goal – a female ovum (egg). It is here that fertilization takes place.

Other elements of the male reproductive system are related to the penis and include the urethra, the foreskin and the glans penis. The urethra is the tube through which semen is ejaculated during sexual activity and it is also the tube through which urine passes. The glans penis is the conical swelling at the tip of the penis. In uncircumcised men, the glans is enclosed by the foreskin, which is attached at the neck of the penis.

After about three years of age, the foreskin, or prepuce, usually becomes retractable so that the glans may be exposed up until this time it sticks to the glans. The inside of the foreskin is covered with sebaceous glands that secrete a substance known as smegma, and this should he removed by regular, careful cleaning of the penis. It is hormonal changes in the male and female bodies during puberty that prepares thorn for their ultimate purpose: sexual activity and reproduction.