Meiosis is a two part cell division process in organisms that sexually reproduce. Through a sequence of steps, the replicated genetic material in a parent cell is distributed among four daughter cells. Meiosis produces gametes with one half the number of chromosomes as the parent cell.

There are two stages of meiosis: meiosis I and meiosis II. At the end of meiosis I, two daughter cells are produced, each with one half the number of chromosomes as the original parent cell. At the end of meiosis II, four daughter cells are produced, each with one half the number of chromosomes as the original parent cell. Meiosis is similar to another cell division process called mitosis. Mitosis produces two cells that are genetically identical to and contain the same number of chromosomes as the parent cell, while meiosis produces four cells that are not genetically identical to the parent cell and contain one half the number of chromosomes. This meiosis animation illustrates the meiotic process and compares it to the process of mitosis.