Sperm morphology and morphometry of Phocoena spinnipinis (Burmeister’s porpoise)

A. BEILIS, P. CETICA AND M.S. MERANI

MARINE MAMMAL SCIENCE

Blackwell Publishing

Año: 2000 vol. 16 p. 636 - 639

0824-0469

Knowledge of sperm morphology and morphometry in mammals may contribute to the understanding of their phylogeny and evolution of reproductive systems. The aim of this work was to characterize the shape, dimensions, and the percentage of abnormalities of Burmeister´s porpoise spermatozoa and to compare the results with those for other cetaceans. Spermatozoa of two adults male Burmeister´s porpoises were obtained from individuals accidentally caught in gillnets in Necochea, Argentina. The epididymal sperm concentration were 2.7x10-6 and 2.16x10-6 spermatozoa per mm3 in males 1 and 2, respectively. The percentages of total sperm abnormalities observed were very low, 4.25% and 5.50%, respectively. The sperm shape and sizes did not present great variation from that reported for other cetaceans. The sperm morphology and morphometry of P. spinipinnis correspond to the ancestral type described for mammalian spermatozoa. Although there are few species of cetaceans for which spermatozoa have been studied, there seems to be little diversification in this order. The main differences are only in some morphometric parameters, as in other eutherian orders.