title: Seasonal variations of semen quality in male goats: study of sperm abnormalities.
abstract: The type, frequency and seasonal variation of sperm abnormalities in male goats inhabiting in Mediterranean region were evaluated. Semen was collected twice a week with an artificial vagina from 9 10-month-old Murciano-Granadina male goats weighing 41 to 48 kg. Distal cytoplasmic droplets and acrosomal damage were the predominant abnormalities. Increase in age (10 to 27 months) did not reveal itself as a main effect on the occurrence of sperm abnormalities. All types of sperm abnormalities studied showed significant (P<0.01) seasonal variation. The poorest quality semen was collected during winter and spring. In spite of a seasonal variation in sperm quality, semen of Murciano-Granadina goats in the Mediterranean area is good all year long, since the proportion of abnormal spermatozoa was well within the accepted range for normal fertility.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Pathology, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Murcia, 30071 Murcia, Spain.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Roca
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Sánchez-Valverde
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ruiz
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Vázquez