question 1: What two ovulation strategies are observed in the animal kingdom?
answer: spontaneous ovulation, and induced ovulation

question 2: What does spontaneous ovulation mean?
answer: spontaneous ovulation means that ovulation occurs independent of whether or not an animal is mated

question 3: What does induced ovulation mean?
answer: induced ovulation means that vulvovaginal stimulation is required for the hormones that cause ovulation (Gn-RH, and L,H) to be released

question 4: What 2 hormones are involved with ovulation, and how do they exert their effects?
answer: gonadotropin releasing hormone (Gn-RH) is released from the hypothalamus, and causes the anterior pituitary to release luteinizing hormone (L,H), which in turn acts on the ovaries, stimulating ovulation and development of corpora lutea

question 5: What is reflex ovulation? 
answer: reflex ovulation is an alternate term for induced ovulation

question 6: Which animal families or groups are induced ovulators? 
answer: lagomorphs, carnivores, most insectivores, some rodents, and some artiodactyls are induced ovulators

question 7: Can you name two lagomorphs that are induced ovulators?
answer: rabbits and hares

question 8: Can you name three carnivores that are induced ovulators? 
answer: cats, mustelids, and raccoons

question 9: Can you name an insectivore that is an induced ovulator? 
answer: shrews

question 10: Can you name three rodents that are induced ovulators? 
answer: ground squirrels, voles, and lemmings

question 11: Can you name three artiodactyls that are induced ovulators?
answer: llamas, alpacas, and camels

question 12: Which animal families or groups are spontaneous ovulators? 
answer: most laboratory species are spontaneous ovulators, including mice, rats, hamsters, gerbils, and guinea pigs.  Most domestic livestock are also spontaneous ovulators, as are primates, including humans

question 13: What does the term, monestrous, mean?  
answer: only one estrous cycle occurs within a single breeding season, as is seen with dogs

question 14: What does the term, polyestrous, mean?  
answer: multiple estrous cycles occur within a single breeding season, as is seen with mice

question 15: Which animal species is unseasonably monestrous?
answer: dogs

question 16: Which animal species are seasonably polyestrous?
answer: ferrets, cats, squirrel monkeys, rhesus macaques, goats, sheep, and horses 

question 17: Which animal species are polyestrous throughout the entire year? 
answer: mice, rats, guinea pigs, hamsters, gerbils, Callitrichids, cynomolgous macaques, baboons,
pigs, and cows

question 18: Which non-human primates exhibit a true menstrual cycle?  
answer: Old World primates, and great apes

question 19: What is a postpartum estrus?  
answer: a period of estrus immediately follows parturition; females of species with postpartum estrus can 
breed, and potentially conceive, within hours of parturition

question 20: Can you name seven species that demonstrate a postpartum estrus?  
answer: mice, rats, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, rabbits, and marmosets have postpartum estrus

question 21:  Can you name 5 mammalian species with double cervices?  (hint: having 2 cervices is a chore, CHORE)
answer: chinchillas, hamsters, opossum, rats, and rabbits have double cervices.

question 22: Can you name the 5 mammalian species that have precocious neonates?
answer: spiny mice, cotton rats, guinea pigs, chinchillas, and degus have precocious neonates

question 23: Which laboratory rodent species is known to form monogamous breeding pairs?
answer: hamsters

question 24: Which laboratory non-human primate is known to form 
monogamous breeding pairs?
answer: the Aotus monkey

question 25: Which laboratory non-human primate shows seasonal weight changes in both males and females?
answer: the squirrel monkey

question 26: What are the 4 placental classifications based on macroscopic, appearance, and can you name a representative species for each?
answer: discoid (as seen in humans), cotyledonary, (as seen in ruminants), diffuse, (as seen in whales), and zonary, (as seen in carnivores)

question 27: What are the 4 placental classifications based on intimacy of fetal-maternal contact, or the number of layers between fetal trophoblast and maternal endometrial surface?
answer: epitheliochorial , (with 6 cell layers); syndesmochorial, (with 5 cell layers);  endotheliochorial , (with 4 cell layers); and hemochorial, (with 3 cell layers).  This is the Grosser classification, as developed by Grosser in 1927.

question 28: Can you name 3 mammalian species that have a diffuse type placenta?
answer: pigs, horses, and whales

question 29: Which mammalian species have a cotyledonary, or multiplex type placenta?
answer: ruminants

question 30: Can you name 2 mammalian species that have a zonary type placenta?
answer: dogs and cats

question 31: Can you name 2 mammalian species or groups that have a discoidal type placenta?
answer: rodents and primates

question 32: Which 3 primate species have a mono-discoidal placenta?
answer: baboons, chimpanzees and humans

question 33: Which primate species has a bidiscoidal placenta?
answer: macaques  

question 34: What are the 6 layers that make up the placental barrier that separates fetal and maternal blood?
answer: fetal endothelium, fetal connective tissue, fetal epithelium (or chorion),  maternal epithelium, maternal connective tissue, and maternal endothelium.

question 35: Which placentation type consists of 1 cell layer?
answer: hemoendothelial 

question 36: Which placentation type consists of 3 cell layers?
answer: hemochorial

question 37: Which placentation type consists of 4 cell layers?
answer:  endotheliochorial 

question 38: Which placentation type consists of 5 cell layers?
answer: syndesmochorial

question 39: Which placentation type consists of 6 cell layers?
answer: epitheliochorial 

question 40: Which species have hemochorial placentation, or placentation with 3 cell layers? (hint: Rah! Rah! for placentation like humans)
answer: rodents, armadillos, rabbits, and anthropoidial primates

question 41: Which species have endotheliochorial  placentation, or placentation with 4 cell layers?
answer: carnivores, (cat, dog, et-cetera).

question 42: Which species have syndesmochorial placentation, or placentation with 5 cell layers?
answer: ruminants - placentation is 6 sell layers except at the placentomes, (the interface of the uterine caruncle and the placental cotyledon), where the maternal epithelium is lacking; [note: this category is not universally recognized]

question 43: Which species have epitheliochorial  placentation, or placentation with 6 cell layers?
answer: prosimians, pigs, ruminants (i.e., sheep, goat, cattle), and horses

question 44: Which species have a deciduate, or co-joined, placenta (a.k.a. placenta vera)?
answer: rodents and primates; carnivores have a modified version

question 45: Which species have an adeciduate, or indeciduate placenta?
answer: pigs, horses, and ruminants

question 46: Which species are parthenogenetic , or reproduce offspring without fusion of male and female gametes?
answer: 26 species of lizards, 1 species of snakes, and several species of fish, including the Amazon molly (Poecilia formosa) and the mangrove rivulus (Rivulus marmoratus); all members of these species are female, and are essentially clones

question 47: Which genus of parthenogenetic  lizards has been studied extensively, and is occasionally cited in scientific literature?
answer: the genus, Cnemidophorous, collectively referred to as the whiptail lizards

question 49: Can you name 2 species that are hermaphroditic?
answer: the giant land slug, and the giant leech

question 50: What are the 5 stages of estrous?
answer: proestrus, estrus, metestrus, diestrus, and anestrus

question 51: What cells are seen on vaginal swabs during proestrus?
answer: epithelial cells

question 52: What cells are seen on vaginal swabs during estrus?
answer: cornified cells

question 53: What cells are seen on vaginal swabs during metestrus?
answer: cornified cells, epithelial cells, and white blood cells

question 54: What cells are seen on vaginal swabs during diestrus?
answer: epithelial cells, and white blood cells

question 55: What cells are seen on vaginal swabs during anestrus?
answer: epithelial cells

question 56: What is the gestation of the hamster? 
answer: 14 to 15 days

question 57: What is the gestation of the mouse? 
answer: 19 to 21 days

question 58: What is the gestation of the rat? 
answer: 21 to 23 days

question 59: What is the gestation of the gerbil? 
answer: 24 to 26 days if non-lactating, 27 to 48 days if lactating

question 60: What is the gestation of the rabbit? 
answer: 30 to 33 days 

question 61: What is the gestation of the ferret? 
answer: 42 days, plus or minus 2 days

question 62: What is the gestation of the cat? 
answer: 65 to 66 days

question 63: What is the gestation of the dog? 
answer: 64 days

question 64: What is the gestation of the guinea pig? 
answer: 68 days, with a range of 59 to 72 days

question 65: What is the gestation of the pig? 
answer: 114 days; (note: this is easy to remember as 3 months, 3 weeks, and 3 days)

question 66: What is the gestation of the goat? 
answer: 150 days, plus or minus 5 days

question 67: What is the gestation of the sheep? 
answer: 145 to 150 days

question 68: What is the gestation of the Aotus monkey? 
answer: approximately 145 days

question 69: What is the gestation of the squirrel monkey? 
answer: approximately 150 days

question 70: What is the gestation of the macaque? 
answer: approximately 165 days

question 71: What is the gestation of the baboon? 
answer: approximately 185 days

question 72: What is the gestation of the chimp? 
answer: 8 and a half months, or 240 days

question 73: What is the gestation of the cow? 
answer: 280 days, plus or minus 10 days

question 74: What is the gestation of the elephant? 
answer: 22 months

question 75: At what age do mice wean? 
answer: 18 to 21 days

question 76: At what age do hamsters wean? 
answer: 21 days, or when they reach 35 to 40 grams

question 77: At what age do rats wean? 
answer: 21 to 23 days

question 78: At what age do gerbils wean? 
answer: 22 to 24 days

question 79: At what age do guinea pigs wean? 
answer: 21 days, or when they reach 180 grams

question 80: At what age do rabbits wean? 
answer: 5 to 8 weeks; (note: kits start eating solid food At 21 days)

question 81: At what age do ferrets wean? 
answer: 6 to 8 weeks

question 82: At what age do cats wean? 
answer: 6 to 8 weeks

question 83: At what age do puppies wean? 
answer: 6 to 8 weeks

question 84: At what age do rhesus monkeys wean? 
answer: 6 months

question 85: At what age are mice sexually mature? 
answer: 4 to 7 weeks

question 87: At what age are gerbils sexually mature? 
answer: 4 to 7 weeks, the same as for mice

question 86: At what age are rats sexually mature? 
answer: 6 to 8 weeks

question 88: At what age are hamsters sexually mature? 
answer: 6 to 8 weeks for males, 8 to 12 weeks for females.

question 89: At what age are guinea pigs sexually mature? 
answer: 8 weeks

question 90: At what age are rabbits sexually mature? 
answer: sexual maturity in  rabbits varies with the breed; dwarves are sexually mature at 4 months, New Zealand whites at 5 to 7 months, and giants at 9 to 12 months

question 91: At what age are ferrets sexually mature? 
answer: 4 to 12 months

question 92: At what age are cats sexually mature? 
answer: 6 to 9 months

question 93: At what age are dogs sexually mature? 
answer: 6 to 9 months (note: dogs are not socially mature until 18 to 36 months)

question 94: At what age are rhesus monkeys sexually mature? 
answer: 1 to 4 years

question 95: What are the three major benefits that result from outbreeding?
answer: maximum genetic diversity, vigorous, robust offspring, and larger litters

question 96: Can you name four common outbred stocks of mice?
answer: CD1, CF1, ICR, and Swiss mice

question 97: What are the three major benefits that result from inbreeding?
answer: homozygosity at approximately 99% of loci, elimination of heritable trait differences for experimental purposes, and elimination of rejection of tissue shared between animals


question 98: Can you name four common inbred strains of mice?
answer: BALB/c, C3H, C57BL, and DABDBA  mice are inbred strains

