Research Regarding the Refrigeration of Mouflon Semen During the Non-Breeding Season

摘要

The research is included in a study regarding the cryoperservationbiotechnologies of the mouflon semen, which will be included in the PhD thesis. The studywas conducted in the non-breeding season on a number of two mouflons from the ZoologicalGarden, assessing the suitability of mouflon semen, obtained by electroejaculation, atrefrigeration, on standardized commercial extenders for small ruminants. The AndroMedextender used in this study proved to be unsuitable for the conservation of the mouflon semen.The most common abnormalities found in the morphometric analysis were found in the spermtail. Refrigeration process had an effect on the morphometric sperm cell head. All spermparameters studied were lower for the semen samples subjected to the chilling processcompared with the fresh semen in 2010, and in 2011 these changes were not found in thechilled semen, the measurements showing the keeping of the initial size of the sperm head inthe first 24-48 hours after refrigeration. Future research directions will focus on similarstudies during the breeding season in order to compare the cryopreservation techniques ofmouflon semen.