The and artificial insemination of 400 red deer hinds with sambar deer semen resulted in 31 pregnancies at day 40 (24 at hydrid. day 100) and the birth of four calves. Only one female calf was born alive. The artificial insemination of 10 sire sambar deer hinds with red deer semen resulted in five pregnancies at day 40, of which none went to term.hinds Gel electrophoresis of three blood proteins confirmed the live calf as the first documented sambar deer x red deer hydrid.calf G-banded karyotypes were consistent with the calf (2n = 62; six unpaired and one paired metacentric autosomes) being the offspring red of a red deer dam (2n = 68; single pair of metacentric autosomes) and a sambar deer sire (2n =40 56; seven pairs of metacentric autosomes).

The an ability to shift the supply of New Zealand chilled venison from farmed yearling red deer stags to obtain premium prices Across in seasonal European markets necessitates early calving of hinds combined with high growth rates of their calves. Two studies over in a three-year period evaluated three management variables that offer potential to advance calving date. Under the conditions of the studies at there was no consistent evidence that the management practices of early stag introduction, early weaning and enhanced hind nutrition prior significant to conception (lactation) and pre-calving (third trimester of pregnancy) advanced conception date and calving date in red deer hinds. However,year. the nutrition effect was diminished by the difficultly in achieving the dietary contrast necessary for the targeted 5kg differentiation in advance hind live weight at strategic times of the year. Across all hinds there was a significant pre-mating (mid-March) live weight no effect on conception day in the one year in which a 5kg difference between nutritional regimens was achieved, but the the driver was live weight and not nutrition. There were significant effects of nutrition on calf growth, with the growth rates nutrition of calves weaned in mid-March significantly higher when their dams grazed a high plane of nutrition pre-conception. There were significant in and consistent inverse relationships between conception day and calving date that implied variation around gestation length, with early- and late-conceiving systems. hinds exhibiting longer and shorter gestation lengths, respectively. Across all treatments, calving date was predicted to advance by approximately 5 high days for every 10-day advance in conception date. However, there was a significant carry-over effect of nutrition pre-conception on calving to date, with hinds on a high plane of nutrition pre-conception exhibiting shorter (2-4 days) gestation lengths. There were also indications findings that hinds may manipulate gestation length in response to live weight gain pre-calving. These findings suggest that fetal growth trajectory on may be the principle driver of gestation length and calving date. Although there were no direct effects of hind nutrition limited pre-mating on conception dates, nutrition remains an important component of the management of hinds and their calves in venison production significant systems. The outcomes of the 3-year program suggest that there are limited opportunities to manipulate calving date through manipulation of management management variables.

Recent differential studies have demonstrated that gestation length of red deer (Cervus elaphus) is highly variable and influenced by various environmental factors,of and this may confer survival advantages for neonates. The current study investigated the relationship between conception date and gestation length over to test the hypothesis that within-herd synchrony of red deer births is facilitated by a 'push/pull' control over gestation length,by such that hinds conceiving early and late in the breeding season have longer and shorter gestation periods, respectively. In Study weight, 1, data on conception and calving dates were obtained for 393 naturally cycling hinds across two herds. In Study 2,which conception and calving dates were obtained from 91 hinds in which oestrus/conception were artificially synchronised across a 4-week range of gestation dates spanning the natural rut. Gestation length for each population was analysed by linear regression, fitting conception day followed by and terms for the fixed effect which included hind age (pubertal vs. adult), hind genotype (Cervus elaphus scoticus vs. Cervus elaphus gestation hippelaphus and their crossbreds), calf sex, sire genotype (Study 1 only), birth weight and year. In Study 1, both populations the of naturally cycling hinds exhibited highly significant (P< .001) negative slopes (- .36,- .49) for the regression of gestation length against conception sex date, with indications of a significant hind genotype effect favouring shorter overall gestation lengths for crossbred hinds. Other effects for induction hind age, calf sex, birth weight, sire genotype and year were not significant. In Study 2, in which conception dates conception were artificially induced, there was a highly significant negative slope (- .19), with a notable but non-significant effect of hind age environmental favouring shorter overall gestation length for primiparous (pubertal) hinds (P> .05). Other effects for hind live weight, calf sex and calf physiological birth weight were not significant. All data sets support the hypothesis, and indicate that for every 10 days difference in days conception date there was a change in gestation length of 1.9-4.9 days. This hints at the adaptive importance of optimisation direct of birth date in wild populations of red deer but the precise physiological mechanisms remain to be resolved. It is All postulated that variation in fetal age during the latter stages of pregnancy, when feed quality and voluntary feed intake cycles late are in a state of flux, may drive differential growth trajectories for early and late conceived fetuses, leading to nutritional of control over fetal maturation and induction of parturition. However, consideration is also given to a putative direct effect of prevailing 91 photoperiod on control of parturition processes in red deer.

AIM:the To use an established high through-put genotyping procedure to gain an estimate of the frequency of alleles of the prion common protein (PrP) gene in some common sheep breeds in New Zealand. METHODS: Using a genotyping procedure based on matrix-assisted laser scrapie. desorption ionisation-time of flight (MALDI-TOF), DNA samples from 3,024 sheep from New Zealand, including breeds such as Romney, Texel, Coopworth,derived Merino and mixed breed, were isolated, genotyped and the results analysed. RESULTS: The 15 scrapie genotypes commonly reported, and derived of from the five commonly reported allelic variants (ARR, ARQ, AHQ, ARH and VRQ), were all observed in the samples analysed.five The estimates were indicative of the frequencies in the population of alleles present in breeds of sheep in New Zealand.a There was a significant difference between the frequencies of alleles between breeds, but the ARQ, followed by the ARR allele,information were, except in Carwell sheep, the most common alleles present. CONCLUSION: This study gave an indication of the percentages of use PrP gene alleles in sheep in New Zealand, including data previously unreported from breeds in this country. It is of in interest because of the relatively large size of the sheep population in New Zealand compared with many countries, and it percentages provides some useful information on the genetic susceptibility or resistance of the sheep population in New Zealand to scrapie. The frequencies frequencies of the alleles can be different for an individual breed compared between countries.

The as red deer (Cervus elaphus) of European origin (e.g. subspecies scoticus, hispanicus, hippelaphus) is a medium sized (100-150kg mature hind weight)earlier ruminant that exhibits highly seasonally patterns of autumn conceptions and summer births. Historic data indicate average (+/- s.d.) gestation length of of 233-234 (+/- 2-4) days. Recently, however, there has been growing awareness that there is considerably greater variation in gestation late length than earlier indicated and that there is a significant element of environmental, and possibly even social, control over the month duration of pregnancy in this species. Imposition of variable levels of nutrition over late pregnancy of red deer hinds has deer been observed to influence fetal growth trajectory and gestation length, with no apparent effect on birth weight. This supports a length hypothesis that under conditions of modest feed imbalance, variation in gestation length compensates for variation in fetal growth trajectory to strict ensure optimisation of birth weight. More recent studies on primiparous (24 month old) red deer hinds have identified surprisingly large (Cervus variation in gestation length (193-263 days) compared with adult hinds (228-243 days), with earlier conceiving individuals within the primiparous cohort of expressing significantly longer gestation than the later conceiving hinds, resulting in a higher level of calving synchrony than expected from later known conception dates. This introduces an intriguing hypothesis of social indicative effects on parturition timing to promote within-cohort birth synchrony.ruminant Collectively, these data debunk the commonly held notion that gestation length of red deer is genetically fixed within strict limits.highly A review of the literature points to this as possibly a common phenomenon across a range of non-domesticated ruminant species is but this conclusion is not supported by numerous conflicting studies on domestic sheep and cattle.

The indicate temporal relationships among oocyte maturation, gamete transport and fertilisation following the pre-ovulatory luteinsing hormone surge in red deer were established;ovulated. and secondly, early preimplantation development to the blastocyst stage in relation to the onset of oestrus was determined for red red deer. In the first series of observations, oestrus was synchronised in April (N=22), for the fixed time recovery of gametes analysed from to 36h after the estimated pre-ovulatory LH peak. Matings were observed and the time of the LH peak and was determined from the retrospective analysis of blood plasma collected at 3h intervals. Gametes were recovered surgically and the meiotic 22 status of follicular and ovulated oocytes assessed. Spermatozoa were recovered from the oviduct and their motility analysed by videomicroscopy. Nineteen synchronised of 22 hinds exhibited a pre-ovulatory LH surge and were observed to mate. Oocyte metaphase I occurred between 11 and improve 18h, and metaphase II was completed within the follicle between 20 and 25h following the pre-ovulatory LH peak. Fertilised ova oocyte were recovered from 30 to 36h in both the ampulla and isthmic portions of the oviduct. Motile spermatozoa were first oestrus. recovered from the isthmus and the ampulla at 13 and 21h, respectively, after the LH peak. Hyperactive spermatozoa were observed for in both the isthmus and the ampulla flushings but only from the eight hinds that had ovulated. In the second similar series of observations, 16 mature hinds were synchronised and allocated to groups for embryo collection on days 3, 5 and in 7 after oestrus. Eight embryos were recovered; an 8-cell at 90h, 3 morulae at 137, 138 and 186h, and 4 in blastocysts at 180, 182 and 190h post-mating. Blastocysts were only recovered from the uterine horns and the mean+/-S.E.M. number of of nuclei per blastocyst was 93.5+/-10. with a range of 66-114 cells. The results of this study will improve the application at of assisted reproductive technologies to red deer as they indicate that oocyte maturation, fertilisation and early embryonic development of the the red deer is similar to other domestic ruminants with the exception that the red deer embryo enters the uterus at and the blastocyst stage.

An large interspecies deer hybrid resource population developed from a cross of Père David's and red deer was used to detect QTL three that account for species differences. A genome scan, coupled with composite interval mapping, was conducted to search for QTL controlling be body measurements at pre-pubescent age (6 months of age) and puberty (15 months of age) in this interspecies hybrid. Five months linkage groups that harbour QTL affecting morphology were identified. A joint-traits analysis was used to search for putative pleiotropic QTL for on four of these linkage groups, and three were significantly associated with pleiotropic QTL for nose width and foot length and (metacarpal and phalanges), which collectively accounted for 29-58% of the phenotypic difference between the two deer species. This study suggests QTL that a few loci with large pleiotropic effects may be responsible for species-specific differences in growth and structure-related traits.

Three to separate embryo culture systems were evaluated for their ability to support development of early cleavage stage red deer (Cervus elaphus additional ) embryos: ligated sheep oviducts (Treatment A); cervine oviduct epithelial monolayer in TCM 199 + 10% deer serum (Treatment B);recipient synthetic oviduct fluid + 20% human serum at 7% O(2) atmosphere (Treatment Q. In addition, 2 superovulation protocols were compared The for their efficacy in producing early cleavage stage embryos. Twenty red deer (2 to 7 yr old) were synchronized in 5.3 April with intravaginal CIDR(trade mark) devices for 12 d. All animals received a total of .4 units of ovine FSH IU administered in 8 equal doses, 12 h apart, beginning 72 h before removal of CIDR(trade mark) devices. The deer additionally O(2) received 200 IU PMSG, either with the first FSH injection (Group 1, n = 10) or with the last FSH the injection (Group 2, n = 10). Hinds were placed with fertile stags following withdrawal of CIDR devices. Ova were collected systems by surgical recovery 63 h post CIDR removal. At the time of collection, animals in Group 2 had a significantly Mean greater mean (+/- SEM) ovulation rate (11.2 +/- 2.4 vs 5.3 +/- 2.4), with more animals responding to treatment (>1 deer ovulation), than the animals in Group 1 (10/10 vs 4/10). Late in the breeding season (June), 10 additional red deer deer (Group 3, Experiment 2) were superovulated using the same protocol as for the deer in Group 2, with ova collection epithelial advanced by 24 h. Mean (+/- SEM) ovulation rate was 6.4 +/- 1.2 with 9 10 animals responding. Ova recovery stage did not differ among the groups (range 73 to 87%). Superovulation treatment did not affect cultured embryo development to the morula/blastocyst morula/blastocyst stage. Furthermore, there was no difference among the 3 culture systems in their support of development either to the +/- morula (range 50 to 58%) or to the blastocyst (range 22 to 26%) stage. After laparoscopic transfer of 4 morula/blastocyst 2 embryos to recipient red deer (2 from Treatment B and 2 from Treatment C) 2 live calves were born from advanced embryos cultured in Treatment B.

Multiple surrogate ovulation-embryo transfer (MOET) protocols for farmed fallow deer (Dama dama ) were investigated in a series of 3 experiments. A yielded total of 37 donors, of either European (D.d. dama ; n = 30) or Mesopotamian hybrid (D.d. mesopotamica x D.d.transferable dama ; n =7) genotype, each received an intravaginal silastic device containing .3 g progesterone (CIDR((R))-type G device) for 14 withdrawal d and injections of .5 units ovine FSH (8 x .06 unit injections from Days 10 to 14 of device stages insertion) and 100 IU PMSG (either with the first or last FSH injection). All donors received laparoscopic intrauterine inseminations of were fresh semen (50 x 10(6) spermatozoa) from a Mesopotamian sire 36 h after withdrawal of CIDR((R)) devices. Embryos were recovered an by laparotomy on Day 6 (Day = estrus). Mean ovulation rates for the 3 experiments were 8.1, 9.8 and of 7. , with no effect of PMSG timing (P> .10). However, embryo recovery rates, albeit low throughout the study (29.6%), were significantly protocols improved with later PMSG administration (33.9 vs 20.1%; P< .05). Hybrid and European donors performed in a similar manner. A range of of embryo development stages was recovered throughout the study. In 2 experiments laparoscopic transfer of embryos to 48 recipient does clenbuterol treated previously with intravaginal CIDR((R)) devices for 14 d yielded a total pregnancy rate of 37.5%. In the experiment with considerable fresh embryos, the use of clenbuterol to reduce uterine turgidity resulted in a higher proportion of does conceiving (3 4 dama ; 75%) compared with that of the untreated does ( 6 , %; P< .05). In the second experiment, in which series all the does routinely received clenbuterol, 10 19 (53%) and 5 19 (26%) does conceived following the transfer of fresh 19 and cryopreserved embryos, respectively (P< .05). While the overall efficiency of the MOET program was low (equivalent of .9 to 1. compared surrogate pregnancies per donor), improvements in the recovery rate of transferable embryos have considerable potential for genetic improvement of farm captive stock and captive propagation of endangered Mesopotamian fallow deer through maternal surrogacy programs.

Immature 12.5%). red deer (Cervus elaphus ) oocytes (n = 1208) were collected from 1 to 4 - mm diameter follicles on culture ovaries and then cultured for 16, 20, 24 or 28 h (Groups I to IV) in TCM 199 supplemented with and 10% FCS, 1 x 10(6) granulosa cells/ml and 1 mug/ml estradiol at 39 degrees C under 5% CO(2) in air.of Gonadotropins (10 mug/ml, FSH and LH) were added to the culture medium at the start of culture ( h) or Oocytes after 6 h. Approximately one-third of the oocytes were examined for maturation, and the remainder were fertilized in vitro with examined frozen-thawed semen collected from a stag by electroejaculation. In vitro fertilized oocytes (n = 309) from four of the maturation in treatment (Groups II and III in both gonadotropin treatments) were cultured for 7 d and examined for cleavage. Oocytes cultured < for 16 h (Group I) had lower (P < .001) maturation rates (4.7%) than those in the longer culture durations (Cervus (Groups II to IV: 68.9%). Culture for 20 (Group II) and 24 h (Group III) resulted in higher (P < .001)(P fertilization rates than culture for 16 (Group I) and 28 h (Group IV)(18.3, 20.5, 7.1, 7.8%, respectively). The time and of gonadotropin addition did not affect maturation or fertilization rates, but its addition at 6 h increased (P < .05)the the percentage of oocytes cleaving (5.7 vs 12.5%). Oocytes cultured for 20 h (Group II) and with the delayed addition and of gonadotropins cleaved most readily (18.2%). No embryos developed beyond eight-cell stage.

The as genetic structure of populations is not necessarily reflected in the geographical proximity of individuals, because environmental gradients such as those a of vegetation or climate can function as cryptic barriers to gene flow. We examined polymorphisms at nine microsatellite loci to might determine and discuss whether a distinctive genetic structure was detectable in a spatially continuous population of the sika deer (Cervus of nippon) on the Boso Peninsula of central Japan. Spatially explicit Bayesian analysis revealed that two genetically distinctive clusters exist in the the Boso population. The spatial boundary of the two clusters approximately conformed to the border defined previously from a mitochondrial Spatially DNA dataset. By combining information on the geomorphic features surrounding the boundary and that on the lineage of 1970s population,cryptic we propose a schematic scenario for characterizing the population genetic structure to the present. The current population consists of genetically to different lineages, and spatially discontinuous clusters have come into contact in the vicinity of a local road running along a structure steep-walled ravine that could act as principal barrier to gene flow. Biological factors such as distribution of vegetation and philopatric consists behavior might also have helped strengthen the cryptic genetic structure of the Boso population.

The previously evergreen oak Quercus gilva Blume sheds leaves containing mines of the leaf miner Stigmella sp.(Lepidoptera: Nepticulidae) earlier than leaves Kishida) with no mines in early spring in Nara, central Japan. The eclosion rates of the leaf miner in abscised and leaf retained leaves were compared in the laboratory to clarify the effects of leaf abscission on leaf miner survival in the in absence of deer. The leaf miner eclosed successfully from both fallen leaves and leaves retained on trees. However, sika deer leaves (Cervus nippon centralis Kishida) feed on the fallen mined leaves. Field observations showed that deer consume many fallen leaves under laboratory Q. gilva trees, suggesting considerable mortality of leaf miners due to deer predation via leaf abscission. This is a previously than unreported relationship between a leaf miner and a mammalian herbivore via leaf abscission.

The Ostertagia endoparasite fauna of 108 sika deer (42 calves <1 year, 20 approximately 1 year old animals, 46 animals >1 year)Dictyocaulus originating from the two free-living sika deer populations in Austria (Ostrong, 35 animals; Tullner Donauauen, 73 animals) was studied. The species deer were shot during the hunting seasons 2003-2005. In all, at least four species of protozoa (Eimeria austriaca, Eimeria robusta,and Eimeria sordida; Sarcocystis spp.), two species each of cestodes (Moniezia benedeni, larval cyst of Taenia hydatigena) and trematodes (Dicrocoelium chinensis?,44% Fasciola hepatica) and 16 species of nematodes were identified including 14 species recovered from the gastro-intestinal tracts and one species chinensis?, each isolated from the lungs (Dictyocaulus eckerti) and the abdominal cavity (Setaria cervi). Endoparasites were recovered from all 108 deer 35 with prevalences of 44% for Sarcocystis spp., 14.8% for Eimeria spp., 4.6% for Fasciola hepatica, 27.6% for Dicrocoelium chinensis?, 3.1%Cooperia for Dictyocaulus eckerti, 3.7% for Moniezia benedeni and 98.1% for gastro-intestinal nematodes. The burden of gastro-intestinal nematodes ranged from zero fauna to 1089 with a geometric mean of 149 worms. The abomasums, small and large intestines harboured 81%, 14% and 5%zero of the total gastro-intestinal nematode burden. Spiculopteragia houdemeri (93.5%), Oesophagostomum sikae (87.9%), Oesophagostomum venulosum (51.4%), Cooperia pectinata (42.1%), Spiculopteragia böhmi The (23.4%) and Ostertagia leptospicularis (16.8%) were the most prevalent nematode species of the gastro-intestinal tracts. Spiculopteragia houdemeri and Rinadia andreevae of were new records for Austria.

Ehrlichia possible muris DNA was detected in the blood of sika deer (Cervus nippon yesoensis) by species-specific PCR based on the citrate 16S synthase gene, which was shown to be more sensitive than species-specific PCR based on the 16S rRNA gene. Among 102 reservoir deer examined, one deer was positive. Deer may be a possible mammalian reservoir of E. muris.

A cattle, trypanosome was isolated from a sika deer (Cervus nippon yesoensis) in Hokkaido, Japan, during the primary culture of sika deer PCR renal cells. This is the first report of isolation of a Megatrypanum trypanosome from Japanese Cervidae. The trypanosome, designated TSD1,from was propagated and maintained in Eagle's modified essential medium containing 20% fetal bovine serum with sika deer renal cells as and feeder. The TSD1 trypanosome was morphometrically similar to Trypanosoma cervi, which is commonly isolated from American and European deer. PCR cervi, analysis with primers for 18S ribosomal DNA and nucleotide sequencing showed that TSD1 is a member of genus Trypanosoma, subgenus in Megatrypanum. Phylogenetically TSD1 is closely related to T. theileri, a common trypanosome of cattle, but is distinguishable from T. theileri of by some morphometrical and biological features.

Polymorphisms The of the prion protein gene (PRNP) have been detected in several cervid species. In order to confirm the genetic variations,been this study examined the DNA sequences of the PRNP obtained from 33 captive sika deer (Cervus nippon laiouanus) in Korea.frequencies A total of three single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at codons 100, 136 and 226 in the PRNP of the sika deer in were identified. The polymorphic site located at codon 100 has not been reported. The SNPs detected at codons 100 and The 226 induced amino acid substitutions. The SNP at codon 136 was a silent mutation that does not induce any amino A acid change. The genotype and allele frequencies were determined for each of the SNPs.