Birth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring referred to in technical contexts as parturition. In mammals, the process is initiated by hormones which cause the muscular walls of the uterus to contract, expelling the fetus at a developmental stage when it is ready to feed and breathe. In some species the offspring is precocial and can move around immediately after birth but in others it is altricial and dependent on parenting. In marsupials, the fetus is born at a immature stage after a short gestational period and develops further in its mother's womb's pouch, it is not only mammals. Some reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates carry their developing young inside them; some of these are ovoviviparous, with the eggs being hatched inside the mother's body, others are viviparous, with the embryo developing inside her body, as in the case of mammals. Large mammals, such as primates, horses, some antelopes, hippopotamuses, elephants, whales and porpoises are pregnant with one offspring at a time, although they may have twin or multiple births on occasion.

In these large animals, the birth process is similar to that of a human, though in most the offspring is precocial. This means that it is born in a more advanced state than a human baby and is able to stand and run shortly after birth. In the case of whales and porpoises, the single calf is born tail first which minimizes the risk of drowning; the mother encourages the newborn calf to rise to the surface of the water to breathe. Most smaller mammals have multiple births, producing litters of young which may number twelve or more. In these animals, each fetus has a separate placenta; this separates from the wall of the uterus during labor and the fetus works its way towards the birth canal. Large mammals which give birth to twins is much more rare, but it does occur even for mammals as large as elephants. In April 2018 8-month old elephant twins were sighted joining their mother's herd in the Tarangire National Park of Tanzania, estimated to have been born in August 2017. Humans produce a single offspring at a time.

The mother's body is prepared for birth by hormones produced by the pituitary gland, the ovary and the placenta. The total gestation period from fertilization to birth is about 38 weeks; the normal process of childbirth has three stages. The first stage starts with a series of involuntary contractions of the muscular walls of the uterus and gradual dilation of the cervix; the active phase of the first stage starts when the cervix is dilated more than about 4 cm in diameter and is when the contractions become stronger and regular. The head of the baby is pushed against the cervix, which dilates until is dilated at 10 cm diameter. At some time, the amniotic sac bursts and the amniotic fluid escapes. In stage two, starting when the cervix is dilated, strong contractions of the uterus and active pushing by the mother expels the baby out through the vagina, which during this stage of labour is called a birth canal as this passage contains a baby, the baby is born with umbilical cord attached. In stage three, which begins after the birth of the baby, further contractions expel the placenta, amniotic sac, the remaining portion of the umbilical cord within a few minutes.

Enormous changes take place in the newborn's circulation to enable breathing in air. In the uterus, the unborn baby is dependent on circulation of blood through the placenta for sustenance including gaseous exchange and the unborn baby's blood bypasses the lungs by flowing through the foramen ovale, a hole in the septum dividing the right atrium and left atrium. After birth the umbilical cord is clamped and cut, the baby starts to breathe air, blood from the right ventricle starts to flow to the lungs for gaseous exchange and oxygenated blood returns to the left atrium, pumped into the left ventricle, pumped into the main arterial system; as result of these changes, the blood pressure in the left atrium exceeds the pressure in the right atrium, this pressure difference forces the foramen ovale to close separating the left and right sides of the heart. The umbilical vein, umbilical arteries, ductus venosus and ductus arteriosus are not needed for life in air and in time these vessels become ligaments.

Birthing in cattle is typical of a larger mammal. A cow goes through three stages of labor during normal delivery of a calf. During stage one, the animal seeks a quiet place away from the rest of the herd. Hormone changes cause soft tissues of the birth canal to relax as the mother's body prepares for birth; the contractions of the uterus are not obvious externally. She may appear agitated, alternating between standing and lying down, with her tail raised and her back arched; the fetus is pushed toward the birth canal by each contraction and the cow's cervix begins to dilate. Stage one may last several hours, ends when the cervix is dilated. Stage two can be seen to be underway when there is external protrusion of the amniotic sac through the vulva followed by the appearance of the calf's front hooves and head in a front presentation. During the second stage, the cow will lie down on her side to push and the calf progresses through the birth canal; the complete de

Riverside Township is a township in Lac qui Parle County, United States. The population was 301 at the 2000 census. Riverside Township was organized in 1872, named for its location on the Lac qui Parle River. According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 34.5 square miles, of which 34.4 square miles of it is land and 0.1 square miles of it is water. As of the census of 2000, there were 301 people, 113 households, 82 families residing in the township; the population density was 8.7 people per square mile. There were 122 housing units at an average density of 3.5/sq mi. The racial makeup of the township was 99.67% White, 0.33% from two or more races. There were 113 households out of which 30.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 67.3% were married couples living together, 1.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 27.4% were non-families. 22.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.3% had someone living alone, 65 years of age or older.

The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.10. In the township the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 27.6% from 25 to 44, 22.6% from 45 to 64, 15.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females, there were 115.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 119.4 males. The median income for a household in the township was $43,750, the median income for a family was $48,472. Males had a median income of $28,500 versus $19,375 for females; the per capita income for the township was $19,205. About 9.9% of families and 11.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.6% of those under the age of eighteen and 9.3% of those sixty five or over

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