Monitoring male southern hairy-nosed wombat (Lasiorhinus latifrons) reproductive function and seasonality in a captive population

Abstract This study reports on the development and application of techniques used to assess the reproductive status of captive male southern hairy-nosed wombats ( n  = 4) at Rockhampton Zoo. Initially, a GnRH agonist was used to establish a method for determining a reliable index of plasma and faecal testosterone secretion. Intra-muscular injection of buserelin (4 μg) resulted in an increase ( P P P  = 0.22) in faecal testosterone metabolite concentrations was apparent. Testicular volume showed no significant variation ( P  = 0.29) over the sampling period. While there was no seasonal change ( P  = 0.197, n  = 54) in prostate size, bulbourethral gland size increased in late-autumn, peaked in mid-winter and declined in early summer ( P  =   n  = 55). Spermatozoa were found in the urine throughout the year. While, the captive population of SHN wombats at Rockhampton Zoo demonstrated significant changes in reproductive function, the extent of seasonality was less pronounced than that previously reported for wild populations in Southern Australia.