Reproductive events and respective faecal androgen metabolite concentrations in captive male roan antelope (Hippotragus equinus)

Autor: Annemieke C. van der Goot, Daniel W. Hart, Vanessa W. Kamgang, Nigel C. Bennett, Andre Ganswindt
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
0106 biological sciences
Male
Animal sexual behaviour
Physiology
Social Sciences
01 natural sciences
Biochemistry
Feces
Endocrinology
Reproductive Physiology
Roan antelope
Metabolites
Natural Selection
Medicine and Health Sciences
Psychology
Mating
0303 health sciences
Multidisciplinary
Animal Behavior
Reproduction
Androgens
Medicine
Female
Sample collection
Seasons
Research Article
Evolutionary Processes
Science
Zoology
Biology
Animal Sexual Behavior
010603 evolutionary biology
03 medical and health sciences
Reproductive biology
Captive breeding
Juvenile
Animals
Lactation
Secretion
030304 developmental biology
Behavior
Evolutionary Biology
Reproductive success
Endocrine Physiology
Biology and Life Sciences
biology.organism_classification
Hormones
Metabolism
Reproductive Success
Antelopes
Physiological Processes
Zdroj: PLoS ONE, Vol 15, Iss 12, p e0243277 (2020)
PLoS ONE
ISSN: 1932-6203
Popis: Understanding the reproductive biology of the roan antelope (Hippotragus equinus) (É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1803) is crucial to optimise breeding success in captive breeding programmes of this threatened species. In this study, the pattern of faecal androgen metabolite (fAM) production related to reproductive events (calving or birthing, mating, gestation, and lactation), sexual behaviours as well as environmental cues were studied in captive adult male roan antelope. Faecal sample collection and behavioural observations were carried out from August 2017 to July 2018 for three reproductive males participating in a conservation breeding programme at the Lapalala Wilderness Nature Reserve in South Africa. As a prerequisite, the enzyme immunoassay used in this study was biologically validated for the species by demonstrating a significant difference between fAM concentrations in non-breeding adults, breeding adults and juvenile males. Results revealed that in adults males, the overall mean fAM levels were 73% higher during the breeding period compared to the non-breeding periods, and 85% higher when exclusively compared to the lactation/gestation periods, but only 5.3% higher when compared to the birthing period. Simultaneously, fAM concentrations were lower during the wet season compared to the dry season, increasing with a reduction in photoperiod. With the exception of courtship, frequencies of sexual behaviours monitored changed in accordance with individual mean fAM concentrations in male roan antelope, the findings suggest that androgen production varies with the occurrence of mating activity and may be influenced by photoperiod but not with rainfall.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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