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THE RÔLE OF THE PITUITARY IN THE REPRODUCTION OF THE MALE TAMMAR WALLABY, MACROPUS EUGENII

Zoology Department, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

(Received 13th September 1974)

The male wallaby reaches sexual maturity at about 18 months of age, and spermatogenesis in the adult persists throughout the year. Mating activity, however, takes place mainly in late January and early February when the females give birth and have a post-partum oestrus. No mating occurs between June and December when the females are in seasonal anoestrus (Berger, 1970).

In the present study, twenty-three adult male wallabies were examined for any evidence of seasonal changes in testis and accessory organ weights and histology, and in plasma gonadotrophin levels. Hypophysectomy and gonad-ectomy were used to determine the extent to which the reproductive tract is supported by the pituitary. The animals selected were all between 5 and 6·5 kg body weight, as between these body weights the normal variation in organ weights is small.

The wallabies were caught on Kangaroo Island

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