Abstract

Immature male chickens were treated with testosterone (1 mg/day), Δ 4-androstenedione (1 mg/day), 5α-dihydrotestosterone (5α-DHT; 1 mg/day), 5α-androstanedion (1 mg/day), or estradiol (100 μg/day) in order to assess the effects of these steroids on copulatory behavior, agonistic behavior, and attentional processes. Testosterone, estradiol, and 5α-DHT were most effective in stimulating male copulatory behavior above that of oil-treated controls; whereas Δ 4-androstenedione and 5α-androstanedione had less, but nevertheless significant, effects on this behavior. Testosterone and 5α-DHT facilitated agonistic behavior; however, estradiol, 5α-androstanedione, and Δ 4-androstenedione were ineffective in this capacity. The persistence of response to a given stimulus type was increased by testosterone and decreased by 5α-DHT: 5α-Androstanedione had no discernible effect on this behavior. These findings suggest that in the male chicken the neural structures regulating male copulatory and aggressive behavior as well as attentional processes are differentially sensitive to sex steroids. The effects of all these steroids on somatic structures were assessed.

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