Paternal behaviour in biparental hamsters, Phodopus campbelli, does not require contact with the pregnant female

摘要

Male Djungarian hamsters, Phodopus ampbelli, are naturally paternal and actively participate in the birth and car of growing pups. Males undergo hormonal changes several days prior to the birth of their pups. Although these changes cannot be attributed to pup stimuli, they are nevertheless essential for the expression of complete paternal behaviour during and following the birth of the litter. We conducted two laboratory experiments to test the hypothesis that cues from the pregnant female are important for the expression of midwife and paternal behaviour in Djungarian hamsters.