Abstract
The aim of this study was to measure the rates of sperum utilization and production in male house sparrows, passer domesticus: this is the first attempt to do this for any wild bird. The number of spermatozoa in the seminal glomera of males on days -1 to +3 (i.e. during their partner9s fertile period) declined significantly throughout the course of the day. Males had about 12.13 $\times $ 10$^{6}$ spermatozoa in their seminal glomera at the start of the day and during 16 copulations each day used 10.31 $\times $ 10$^{6}$ spermatozoa, which is probably all that was available for ejaculation. Mean ejaculate size was estimated to be 0.64 $\times $ 10$^{6}$ spermatozoa. Seminal glomera occur only in passerines and their function is unclear, but our results suggest a new hypothesis: if spermatozoa production and spermatozoa transport to the seminal glomera are limited to a short period during the night, the seminal glomera serve as a daily spermatozoa store.
Published Version
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