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Spermatocrit and spermatozoa density in Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua): correlation and variation during the spawning season |
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| Authors: | Ana Rakitin Moira M Ferguson Edward A Trippel |
| Institution: | a Department of Zoology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1 b Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Biological Station, St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada E0G 2X0 |
| Abstract: | The utility of spermatocrit (the proportion of solid packed material in semen after centrifugation) as an indicator of spermatozoa density and male spawning stage was tested in Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua). Semen was collected from captive male cod over three spawning seasons. Spermatocrit was positively and significantly correlated with spermatozoa density measured with a Coulter counter (Multisizer), but not with spermatozoa counts in a haemacytometer. Spermatocrit increased significantly as the spawning season progressed. However, day of season explained only 35% of the variation because spermatocrit varied among individual males. Spermatozoa size remained unchanged throughout the sampling period and was not correlated with spermatocrit, indicating that variation in spermatocrit was due to variation in spermatozoa number and not their size. Spermatocrit is a good estimator of sperm density but is not reliable as indicator of spawning stage because of the variation among individual males. |
| Keywords: | Gadus morhua Spermatocrit Spermatozoa density Reproduction Spawning season |
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