title: The breeding management affects fresh and cryopreserved semen characteristics in Melopsittacus undulatus.
abstract: Melopsittacus undulatus is a companion parrot worldwide diffused. Many parrots are considered endangered or vulnerable. The preservation of semen is crucial in endangered species, thus, M. undulatus could be a good model to study sperm characteristics and semen cryopreservation in these other endangered parrots. In this study the effect of the breeding management (males bred in promiscuous aviary or in couple) on sperm characteristics (motility, membrane integrity and morphometry) of fresh and cryopreserved semen was evaluated. The computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA) revealed a significant effect of the husbandry method on semen characteristics in budgerigars: male housed in couple with the female in individual cages allowed the higher results in term of both semen quantity and sperm quality. Total and progressive motility were significantly higher in males bred in couple (68.7±8.9% and 54±15.9%, respectively) than in promiscuous aviary (48.3±15.1% and 24.4±12.4%, respectively), such as sperm velocity (average path velocity, straight line velocity, and curvilinear velocity). The type of sperm movement (amplitude of lateral head displacement, beat cross frequency, straightness, and linearity), sperm membrane integrity and morphometry parameters seemed not affected by the husbandry method. The standardization of a CASA procedure for the semen analysis in M. undulatus allow further studies on parrot semen manipulation and cryopreservation, but the method used for the breeding of the male could have a significant effect on the semen quality.
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Teramo, Viale Crispi 212, 64100 Teramo, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gloria
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Teramo, Viale Crispi 212, 64100 Teramo, Italy. Electronic address: acontri@unite.it.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Contri
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Teramo, Viale Crispi 212, 64100 Teramo, Italy.
authors.forename: Augusto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Carluccio
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Teramo, Viale Crispi 212, 64100 Teramo, Italy.
authors.forename: Salvatore
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Parrillo
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Teramo, Viale Crispi 212, 64100 Teramo, Italy.
authors.forename: Mirko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cicconi
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, University of Teramo, Viale Crispi 212, 64100 Teramo, Italy.
authors.forename: Domenico
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Robbe
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001947:Breeding; D015925:Cryopreservation / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D046408:Melopsittacus / Q000502:physiology*; D023421:Models, Animal; D055101:Semen Analysis / Q000662:veterinary*; D012662:Semen Preservation / Q000662:veterinary*; D013081:Sperm Motility / Q000502:physiology; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000166:cytology
keywords: Avian semen; Breeding; CASA; Cryopreservation