title: Reproductive hormonal patterns in pregnant, pseudopregnant and acyclic captive African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus).
abstract: African wild dogs are one of the most endangered canid species, with free-living populations declining as a consequence of habitat loss, disease and human conflict. Captive breeding is considered an important conservation strategy, but is hampered by a poor overall understanding of the reproductive biology of the species. To improve our basic knowledge, we studied hormone patterns in 15 female wild dogs using non-invasive faecal collections. By comparing longitudinal hormone profiles with behavioural and anatomical changes, females could be allocated among three reproductive classes: pregnant (n=1), pseudopregnant (n=9) and acyclic (n=4). We also monitored a single female in which contraception was induced with a deslorelin implant. Comparison of pseudopregnant and acyclic females showed that, in both classes, faecal oestradiol concentrations increased from anoestrus to pro-oestrus then declined into the oestrous and dioestrous phases. Progestagen concentrations rose steadily from anoestrus to the dioestrous phase in both pseudopregnant and acyclic females and, pseudopregnant females had significantly higher concentrations of progestagens than acyclic females in all phases of the oestrous cycle. Most females classed as pseudopregnant were found in female-only groups, suggesting that wild dogs are spontaneous ovulators. Furthermore, only one adult female did not ovulate, so suppression of reproduction in subordinates is likely to be behavioural rather than physiological.
authors.affiliation: School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia; Institute for Breeding Rare and Endangered African Mammals (IBREAM), 9 Ainslie Place, Edinburgh, EH3 6AT, UK; Botswana Predator Conservation Trust, Private Bag 13, Maun, Botswana.
authors.forename: L K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Van der Weyde
authors.affiliation: School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia; Nuffield Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK.
authors.forename: G B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.affiliation: School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Blackberry
authors.affiliation: Zoo Duisburg, Mülheimer Straße 273, 47058 Duisburg, Germany.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gruen
authors.affiliation: Port Lympne Wild Animal Park, Lympne, Kent, CT21 4PD, UK.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Harland
authors.affiliation: School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia; Institute for Breeding Rare and Endangered African Mammals (IBREAM), 9 Ainslie Place, Edinburgh, EH3 6AT, UK; Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X20 Hatfield, Pretoria 0028, South Africa. Electronic address: mparis@ibream.org.
authors.forename: M C J
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Paris
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000836:Animals, Zoo; D046028:Canidae / Q000502:physiology*; D004958:Estradiol / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D030762:Estrous Cycle / Q000502:physiology*; D005243:Feces / Q000737:chemistry; D005260:Female; D011247:Pregnancy; D011270:Pregnancy, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D011372:Progestins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D011555:Pseudopregnancy / Q000662:veterinary*; D012621:Seasons; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D011372:Progestins; D004958:Estradiol
keywords: African wild dog; Faecal oestradiol; Faecal progestagen; Oestrous cycle; Pseudopregnancy; Reproductive suppression