Abstract
The study of the male reproductive function in coypu population living in Poitou marshlands (central-west France) showed that testicular mass is nearly constant throughout seasons. The demonstration of positive correlations between the evolution of (i) testicular mass and body mass and (ii) testicular mass and age corroborated that the testicular function is continuous and that animals are able to breed all over the year. Changes in endocrine testicular activity, measured by plasma testosterone concentrations (T), showed a great variability from year to year. Nevertheless, a decrease of testicular endocrine activity in wild animals, at the end of autumn and the beginning of winter, seemed to be due to a decrease in food availability. This last point was confirmed by an experimental study: (i) a 50% reduction of available food in winter provoked a decrease of T and (ii) after refeeding ad libitum, T was rapidly restored to high values.
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