El “efecto macho” y el “efecto macho sobre macho” permiten el control sostenible de la reproducción caprina

Photoperiod is the main environmental factor that synchronizes the reproductive seasonality of goats. For this reason, photoperiodic treatments are used to stimulate the sexual activity in males and females during the months of the seasonal sexual rest. However, sociosexual interactions between females and males can also be used to induce the sexual activity during the resting months. Thus, bucks rendered sexually hyperactive by exposure to photoperiodic treatments are more efficient than hypoactive bucks in stimulating the reproductive activity of females during seasonal anestrus, through the phenomena called “short-term male effect” and the recently described “long-term male effect.”. Furthermore, the permanent presence of sexually hyperactive bucks prevents the seasonal anovulation, and goats ovulate all year round. Moreover, sexually hyperactive bucks are also more efficient than hypoactive bucks in stimulating the endocrine and reproductive activity of bucks during seasonal sexual rest. We recently called this phenomenon the “buck-to-buck effect”. In conclusion, sociosexual interactions allow sustainable control of the reproduction of the female and male goats.