title: Influence of daylength on the initiation of the breeding season of the marsupial possum, Trichosurus vulpecula.
abstract: In Queensland, possums in the wild and in captivity first give birth during March and continue to give birth throughout the year until November. In this study the effect of short daylengths on the initiation of breeding activity was examined. One male and 4 female possums were transferred from an outside enclosure into a light control room (10 h light, 14 h dark) on 22 November. A control group of possums was housed in outside enclosures. The possums held in the light room gave birth 81.2 +/- 14.7 days (s.e.m.) after being placed in the short-day photoperiod. The control group gave birth 133.8 +/- 9.8 days after 22 November. This result suggests that photoperiod plays a role in the initiation of the breeding season of the brushtail possum.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Brisbane, Australia.
authors.forename: R T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Gemmell
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D008027:Light; D008394:Marsupialia / Q000502:physiology*; D010060:Ovulation / Q000502:physiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D012098:Reproduction / Q000502:physiology*; D012621:Seasons