Ternary reproduction

[Keiji]

This idea has been bouncing around in my head for a while...

Wouldn't it be interesting if species could reproduce in such a way to have three parents?

It'd be a lot easier on the genetics, because the gene that won would be the one that came from 2 or 3 parents, rather than having dominant genes.

For this to work it would probably be easier with a single gender species than a triple gender species, though.

And no, I am not good with biology =p I just thought this was interesting. Any comments?

[papernuke]

Yes, but there would be a higher diversity of members of the same species. Since in our world, to get a 'queer (non-dominant) trait' (i made that up), it would require both parents to have the non-dominant trait.
However, with three parents, there would be no dominant or non-dominant traits, instead there would be multiple equally possible traits (as Hayate says).
Therefore, instead of needing both parents to have a non-dominant trait to get a 'queer trait,' it would simply require two or three of the parents to have the trait.
But then, of course, there may be the possibility that the trait does not appear often..

[Keiji]

Well, that would stop dominant genetic disease epidemics at any rate, since there are no dominances. With binary reproduction, anyone who has a dominant genetic disease would be unable to have natural children without the disease. With ternary reproduction, there would always be combinations to produce healthy offspring no matter how diseased one individual parent was.

On the other hand of course, it'd enable recessive genetic diseases to be inherited more easily.