female behavior after mating

[kl]

I have noticed with several females over the last few yrs that almost every time after they mate, they expel fluid out of the vent. I am concerned that by doing this, they are getting viable sperm out of them and then there's less chance to become gravid. I realize that it is nearly impossible for them to remove 100% of it but let's face it, the less there is, the less likely for the mating to be effective. Has anyone else noticed this besides me? Sometimes I even hold the females upside down for a few minutes to prevent it but they still sometimes do it right in my hands which is disgusting.

Kim

[Kbell31]

I would imagine if this is in fact a common observance in females after mating it is best to just let them do it and not interfere by holding them upside down. Since mating in animals is done for procreation only, why would a female skink basically inhibit herself from becoming pregnant by flushing out all the sperm afterwards? It doesnt make sense to me, so thats why I would assume it is a natural behavior and the skink knows what she is doing. Idk, Im curious to a more knowledgeable answer on this.

[Richard.C]

i noticed it with my kimberley females kim,easier to notice on newspaper i guess,id never noticed it before but have heard of it,id say its normal

watching them through pregnacy and this western of mine,has anyone ever noticed females squirming/like pushing babies into a more comfy position 4 to 6 weeks before actually birthing

[Katrina]

Yeah, my female Merauke did this after the first 4-5 matings this spring but then not after the later matings. I'm not sure if she is gravid, it was only about a month ago that they were mating, but they ended up breeding 8-9 times.

[Jeff]

Most of my females have done it, but only once or twice a year out of 5-8 successful copulations. It always frustrates me but I always get as many good copulations as I can so that even if that one was fruitless it won't matter too much.

Are your females doing it every time? I kind of assumed that it was just when the male caught her when she had to "go". If it is related to being overly hydrated, maybe you could limit access to water some during the short breeding period?

[Richard.C]

i think its just exess,

[Fatal_S]

I just bred a female for her first time and had this happen. Later the male tasted it then ran around wiping his mouth on everything. I take it it's not so yummy.

[Richard.C]

pmsl,the male said ewwwwwwwwwwww

my thinking is they cant hold alot in them so excess spills,they may just need a flush so to speak

[Fatal_S]

Now I've had it happen a couple times, always with females who weren't too happy about breeding.

[kl]

It probably happens a lot more than people think. Now that I've mentioned it some people will probably notice. As I said earlier, how many people stand there and watch the female for several minutes after she's mated to even notice it.

KL

[Fatal_S]

The ones I saw happened right after mating.

[Jeff]

It probably happens a lot more than people think. Now that I've mentioned it some people will probably notice. As I said earlier, how many people stand there and watch the female for several minutes after she's mated to even notice it.

KL

I'm embarrassed to admit, I do. If I got paid for the hours I watch my skinks, I would probably be a millionaire.

[kl]

It is impossible to get it all out as it's going to coat the tissue and it's sticky. Hopefully it does not stop a female from getting gravid because mine do it. Sometimes they expel it within seconds and often times they do it a minute or 2 later after you place them back in their cage. Try holding the female after mating, for a few minutes and see if that works.

Kim

[Jeff]

Even if you only get one copulation, and the female expels the semen afterwards,there is still a decent chance that she will be impregnated. The litter will likely be smaller than a that of a female who copulated multiple times, but one time is definitely enough to get the job done.

[Scotts1au]

Reproductive chemistry is a complex area, the expulsion of fluid is probably a normal response to condition the reproductive tract to give the sperm the best chance of survival and to get to where they need to alive. I think you will find that it is to alter the pH and introduce hormones to support the sperm in their travels.