| Abstract [eng] |
In recent years much scientific reseach is devoted to the endocrine control of behaviour. In our work we studied the possible role of estrogens in differentiation of sexual behaviour in female chickens. Eksperimental animals were treated on day 8 of embrionic development with an aromataze inhibitor, fadrozole, thus blocking the oestradiol production. Control animals received injections of vehicle (saline). In adulthood behaviour of hens was observed in two different sexual behaviour tests: with mature non-treated (intact) cocks and with non-treated (control) hens. When tested with a cock, fadrozole-treated hens showed reduced readiness to copulate with a cock, tended to dominate and to avoid a cock. When tested with a control hen, experimental birds displayed male-type behaviour – waltzing, mount attempts and crowing,. Some of fadrozole-treated hens showed a full sequence of copulatory behaviour, including cloacal contact movement. Our study supports the hypothesis that oestrogens play a major role in differentiation of sexual behaviour in the domestic chickens. |
