Here's why:

* Human cells normally have 46 chromosomes arranged in 23 pairs.

* Egg cells (and sperm cells) are gametes, meaning they are reproductive cells.

* Gametes undergo meiosis, a type of cell division that reduces the number of chromosomes by half.

* This ensures that when an egg and sperm fuse during fertilization, the resulting zygote has the correct number of chromosomes (46).