Read the following paragraph and answer the question. Give ONLY the answer, no other words or explanation.

For example:

Answer: <most likely answer, as short as possible>.

Paragraph: 
Some of the most important animal behaviors involve mating. Mating is the pairing of an adult male and female to produce young. Adults that are most successful at attracting a mate are most likely to have offspring. Traits that help animals attract a mate and have offspring increase their fitness. As the genes that encode these traits are passed to the next generation, the traits will become more common in the population.


Question: What is the pairing of an adult male to an adult female to produce young?
mating
Mating.