Abstract
Morphology and sperm morphometry, this is an important determinant of male reproductive capacity. Morphometric data may provide relevant information in studies focused on evolutionary biology, sperm quality assessment, including prediction of the potential fertility, semen cryopreservation, or the effect of reprotoxicants. The paper presents the morphometric analysis of spermatozoa from two colour morphs of Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus), and attempts to determine the relationship between selected quality indicators and dimensions and shape of spermatozoa. The research material consisted of ejaculates collected once by manual stimulation from 20 one-year-old Arctic foxes (10 individuals of the blue morph and 10 of the white morph). Ejaculates were analysed for standard parameters (volume, sperm concentration, total number of spermatozoa in the ejaculate) and used for the preparation of microscopic specimens. It was found that, the dimensions of spermatozoa from Arctic foxes depend on the male colour morphs. Spermatozoa from white Arctic foxes were significantly longer (by 1.82 µm) and had larger heads (0.32 µm longer and 0.15 µm wider) compared to spermatozoa from blue Arctic foxes (P<0.05). The interactions between particular sperm dimensions indicated the occurrence of gametes differing in shape. The all correlation coefficients between the morphometric traits of spermatozoa were statistically significant. Our research proved that in the blue Arctic foxes, sperm dimensions (tail length and total sperm length) can be related to the percentage of spermatozoa with primary changes (respectively: r = -0.68 and r = -0.75; at P <0.05). However, in the case of white Arctic foxes, these characteristics depend on the ejaculate volume (respectively: r = 0.65 and r = 0.68; at P <0.05).
Highlights
Reproduction is the most important process of life for all living organisms
Male blue Arctic foxes produced ejaculates with higher sperm concentration and total number of spermatozoa compared to white Arctic foxes
In blue Arctic foxes sperm concentration was over 192.6x106 spermatozoa per cm3 of ejaculate, which was more than 4-fold greater than in ejaculates from white Arctic foxes (47.8x106/cm3; P≤0.05)
Summary
Reproduction is the most important process of life for all living organisms. In the farms of carnivorous fur animals, it is of particular importance, as they are mostly monestrous species (e.g. foxes, minks). As a result of their monestrous cycle, the offspring from these animals are obtained only once a year. This is why it is so important to choose healthy specimens for reproduction, with semen having the best parameters. Semen quality is most often evaluated by determining the physical properties of ejaculate, namely ejaculate volume, sperm concentration in the ejaculate, and Copyright © The Author(s).
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