Summary
Newborn rabbits are completely dependent on a pheromone on the mother's belly for the release of nipple-search behaviour and suckling. Using the stereotyped behavioural response of the pups as a bioassay it could be shown that:
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1.
In non-breeding does pheromone emission is stimulated by experimental long day and suppressed by experimental short day conditions within 1 to 2 weeks of reversing the light regime.
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2.
Under constant long day conditions pheromone emission, readiness to mate, conception rate and litter size remain high with no evidence of endogenous seasonal rhythmicity.
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3.
Experimental changes in daylength of just 1 or 2 h in either direction are sufficient to induce marked alterations in the level of pheromone emission, number of successful matings and average litter size within 2 to 3 weeks.
Pheromone emission would thus seem to provide a sensitive test of photoperiodic responsiveness in nonbreeding female rabbits, and a convenient, non-invasive indicator of their reproductive state.
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Abbreviations
- L/D :
-
h light/h dark
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Hudson, R., Distel, H. Sensitivity of female rabbits to changes in photoperiod as measured by pheromone emission. J Comp Physiol A 167, 225–230 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00188115
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00188115