Fadem B H
Biol Reprod. 1985 Aug;33(1):112-6. doi: 10.1095/biolreprod33.1.112.
Although social factors are known to influence reproduction in a number of eutherian mammals, the effect of these factors on marsupial reproduction has not heretofore been studied. In this study, the temporal pattern of births and of the appearance of vaginal estrus following pairing with a male were examined in the gray short-tailed opossum, a small Brazilian didelphid. Although the estrous cycle is approximately 32 days long in this species, 75% of conceptions occurred within 9 days and 91.6% within 13 days following pairing. When sensory contact was permitted although mating was prevented, females tended to show vaginal estrus 3 to 7 days following pairing with a male. These findings are discussed with respect to possible mechanism, adaptive significance, and evolutionary perspective.
虽然已知社会因素会影响许多真兽亚纲哺乳动物的繁殖，但这些因素对有袋类动物繁殖的影响迄今尚未得到研究。在本研究中，对一种小型巴西袋鼬科动物——灰短尾负鼠在与雄性配对后的分娩时间模式以及阴道发情出现的时间模式进行了研究。尽管该物种的发情周期约为32天，但75%的受孕发生在配对后的9天内，91.6%发生在13天内。当允许感官接触但阻止交配时，雌性在与雄性配对后3至7天往往会出现阴道发情。就可能的机制、适应性意义和进化观点对这些发现进行了讨论。
