Sexual maturation in starlings raised on long or short days: changes in hypothalamic gonadotrophin-releasing hormone and plasma LH concentrations

Abstract

Is the extended prepubertal period which occurs in most birds due to a juvenile photorefractoriness analogous to photorefractoriness in adults? Starlings were taken from nest boxes 4 days after hatching and hand-reared on long days or short days. In females on long days, hypothalamic gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) content and plasma LH concentration remained low. In intact males on long days, plasma LH remained low and the testes remained small, and in castrated birds, plasma LH also remained low. In females reared on short days, hypothalamic GnRH content began to increase dramatically from 4 weeks of age and plasma LH increased from 6 weeks of age. In intact males on short days, there was a slight increase in plasma LH and testicular size, and in castrated males, plasma LH increased markedly from six weeks of age. All birds on long days moulted into adult plumage, whereas those on short days retained juvenile plumage. The changes in birds reared on short days were similar to those found when photorefractory adult birds are transferred to short days. This adds to the evidence that juvenile photorefractoriness is analogous to photorefractoriness in adults, and therefore that the seasonal termination of photorefractoriness is an annual puberty. However, the responses to short days occur later in birds raised on short days than in older birds transferred to short days, which suggests either that short day-induced changes occur more slowly in young birds, or that birds only respond to short days after a certain age. Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 123, 189–196