Influence of light and photoperiodicity on pig prolificacy

In the wild pig mating activity is seasonal. The main breeding period is in late autumn but a second period may occur around April. It is known from other species that seasonal variations in breeding activity are mainly regulated by photoperiod. In the domestic pig seasonal influences on prolificacy still exist: for example, AI boars not only show decreased steroid synthesis, sperm counts and libido in summer compared with the optima which occur in winter but also a biphasic pattern with a transient increase in spring. In cyclic sows ovarian function may be affected with anoestrus mainly in summer and occasionally in February/March. Additionally ovulation rate may be lower in summer and the duration of oestrus prolonged compared with that in late autumn and winter. In consequence the interval from weaning to oestrus is prolonged in summer and mating during this season leads to lower conception rates and slightly smaller litters. Light programmes which extend the daily light period to a constant 15-16 h seem to be ineffective in improving reproductive characteristics of the sow but stimulate the sucking frequency of piglets and increase survival of piglets with a low birthweight. Simulation, in summer, of the decreasing photoperiod (naturally occurring in autumn) stimulates the reproductive characteristics of AI boars, optimizing testicular steroid production, libido and semen composition. Similarly, a programme of decreasing light (20 min decrease/week) from May to August removed the seasonal increase (June-August) of the weaning-to-oestrus interval which was 5.7 days (compared with 23.6 days for the controls). An interaction between photoperiod and puberty attainment seems to exist for male and female pigs. Further experiments with appropriate light programmes, however, are necessary to clarify this interaction.