Reproduction en captivité des cricétomes Cricetomys gambianus Waterhouse, 1840 (Cricetidae, Rongeurs) par stimulation mécanique des femelles à Kinshasa, République Démocratique du Congo.

The present study concerns matings of the cricetome, Cricetomys gambianus, by mechanical stimulation of females in captivity at the University of Kinshasa. Seven females were stimulated between November 2023 and June 2024. After stimulation, the female was transferred to a male cage and daily vaginal secretions were collected and observed under a light microscope for one month to attest heat, copulation and gestation. Seventeen newborn cricetomes from 6 farrowings of 6 females were obtained. Through 157 smears, estrus appeared 95 times (60, 5%) in stimulated females. Sixty (63, 1%) vaginal plugs were recorded during estrus. Female stimulation appears to have a significant influence on cricetome mating (P< 0.001). The lack of receptivity observed at the start and the high temperatures recorded during the experiment could be the cause of the low pregnancy rate, as the individuals used in this study had remained unmated for a long time.