IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Swanson, W.F.; Brown, J.L.; Wildt, D.E. | |
| Influence of seasonality on reproductive traits of the male Pallas' cat and implications for captive management | |
| 1996 Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine (27): 234-240 | |
A male Pallas' cat (Felis manul) was housed under natural lighting conditions in an outdoor pen for 20 mo and subjected to bimonthly reproductive evaluations consisting of blood sampling for hormonal analysis, testicular volume and body weight measurement, and electroejaculation. Distinct seasonal reproductive patterns were identified; sperm production and quality in the breeding season (December-April) was significantly higher (P < 0.01) than that in the nonbreeding season (June-October). Testicular volume did not differ(P > 0.05) between seasons, but body weight gain and loss occurred (P < 0.01) 1-2 mo before the breeding and nonbreeding seasons, respectively. Although serum testosterone concentrations were similar (P > 0.05) in both seasons, serum luteinizing hormone (LH) concentrations were greater (P < 0.01) during the breeding season, and sperm concentration, total number of sperm per ejaculate, percentage of morphologically normal sperm, sperm motility, and serum LH concentration were correlated (r = 0.60- 0.99; P < 0.05). The male Pallas' cat exhibits a pronounced reproductive seasonality, which has important implications for captive breeding management and genome resource banking. |
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