Reproductive output, maternal age, and survivorship in captive common marmoset females (Callithrix jacchus)

Abstract

Common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) demonstrate significant variation in reproductive output on both a yearly and lifetime basis in comparison to other anthropoid primates. We explore the factors that may be most important in determining reproductive variation in captive common marmosets. Studies have found that maternal age, maternal condition, and dam survivorship are related to reproductive output; however, these reports are not in agreement and are far from conclusive. With the use of a large, multicolony, demographic database pooling data across five marmoset colonies, we examined litter information for 1,649 litters, and reproductive summaries for 400 dams to assess 1) how reproductive output variation (total production, total weaned production) is determined by litter size, interbirth interval (IBI), age at first birth, and dam survival age; 2) the relationship between maternal age and reproductive output variables; and 3) relationship between the reproductive output variables and survival. We used stepwise regression procedures to describe the amount of variation in lifetime reproductive output among dams, and found that mean litter size accounted for 18% of the variance in total production, survival age accounted for 10.6%, age at first birth accounted for 8.8%, and mean IBI accounted for 5%. For total (nonzero) weaned production, survival age accounted for 7.6% of variance, age at first birth accounted for 7.2%, mean IBI accounted for 2%, and mean litter size accounted for 1.6%. We identified significant effects (P<0.05) of maternal age on litter size and IBI length, but no effect of dam age on weaned litter size. Cox proportional hazards regression analyses revealed significant effects (P<0.01) of number of litters, age at first birth, and site on dam survivorship. Dams that produced more litters showed higher survivorship. Age at first birth showed a positive relationship with dam survivorship, i.e., dams that delayed first reproduction had higher survival. Our findings about reproductive variation in marmosets may have practical applications for the management of marmoset breeding colonies.

Developmental Origins of Pregnancy Loss in the Adult Female Common Marmoset Monkey (Callithrix jacchus)

“…As described by Tardif and Bales [29], early adult weight was measured between 17–22 months. This is a few months later than the average age of puberty (11–13 months) and precedes the average age of first conception (2.49 years) [19], but reflects the achievement of adult weight [37], [38].…”

Aging Phenotypes of Common Marmosets (Callithrix jacchus)

“…They typically produce litters consisting of fraternal twins, with a gestational length of 143 days. Marmosets reach sexual maturity at approximately eighteen months, and the average lifespan in captivity for Callithrix jacchus is 4 to 6 years [2–4]. Marmosets are often considered “aged” at 8 years of age at which point studies have noted fibrous cartilaginous changes in intra-articular disks, β -amyloid deposition in the cerebral cortex, and reduced neurogenesis in the hippocampus [5–8].…”

“…Marmosets are often considered “aged” at 8 years of age at which point studies have noted fibrous cartilaginous changes in intra-articular disks, β -amyloid deposition in the cerebral cortex, and reduced neurogenesis in the hippocampus [5–8]. The maximum lifespan reported for marmosets in captivity is 16 years; however, the population of animals aged 13–16 in any captive colony is very sparse, and the oldest animal in the Southwest National Primate Research Center (SNPRC) colony history was 13.7 [4]. The short lifespan of these primates along with the fast reproduction and recent improvements in husbandry results in the ability to form large populations of aged adults.…”

Primate aging in the mammalian scheme: the puzzle of extreme variation in brain aging

“…Elimination of chronic infections has been a major contributor to producing this survival curve shape (Finch 2007). By contrast, because substantial mortality occurs even early in adulthood and long before evident senescence, captive primate survival curves are typically more linear, even concave (Allman et al 1998;Smucny et al 2004). In addition, given optimum husbandry one would expect animals in captivity to survive far longer than animals in the wild.…”