Effect of Season on Sperm Morphology in Different Breeds of Cattle and Murrah Buffaloes

A study was carried out on 566 ejaculates collected during April 2006 to March 2008 from cattle (Holstein Friesian, Jersey and crossbred) and Murrah buffalo bulls maintained at Animal Breeding Centre, Salon. It was observed that season has highly significant (P<0.01) effect on sperm morphology in cattle, while in buffaloes significant (P<0.05) effect of season was observed only for minor abnormalities. In cattle, maximum morphologically abnormal sperms were produced during hot humid summer season, while in buffaloes,higher sperm abnormalities were observed during hot dry summer and winter season. Among the cattle, crossbreds were found to produce more morphologically abnormal sperms than the pure exotic breeds. Among the exotic breeds, Jersey bulls produced less number of morphologically abnormal sperms than Holstein Friesian bulls.