Annual testicular cycle of blossomheaded parakeet,Psittacula cyanocephala(Aves, Psittacidae), under natural environmental conditions

Abstract

Abstract Histophysiological studies of the annual testicular events in an Indian Psittaciform bird, blossomheaded parakeet Psittacula cyanocephala, under natural environmental conditions revealed that the bird is a seasonal breeder with a single peak in a year. Active spermatogenesis takes place only during February and March, but maximum seasonal maturation of the Leydig cells occurs at least one month before the onset of active production of sperm. Comparison of the annual cycles of reproductive parameters with those of different climatological variables could show that duration of solar‐day, in contrast to ambient temperature and rainfall, through its cyclicity parallels, though in part, the gonadal cycle of male blossomheaded parakeet.