From How Mogwai and Gremlins Work:
Mogwai are asexual and reproduce through a process known as budding. Various flatworms, sponges and corals also reproduce this way, but perhaps the best multicellular organism of comparison is the freshwater hydra. These tiny, tentacled creatures generally grow to lengths of between 0.6 and 1.2 inches (15 and 30 millimeters). If food and water are plentiful, then the hydra grows a series of small bumps (or buds) on its body. These bumps develop into miniature hydras that eventually pinch off from the parent organism to fend for themselves.
A healthy hydra may produce new offspring every three to four days. With mogwai, the budding process is more rapid. If a well-nourished mogwai’s skin comes into contact with even a small amount of liquid water, several furry balls bud from the creature’s back and pinch free from the parent mogwai as independent organisms — all in less than a minute.
