Social Dominance and Courtship and Mating Behaviour in Rams in Non-Competitive and Competitive Pen Tests

A group of 19 Merino rams was used to determine: (i) if body weight, age and testis characteristics are different between high (HR) and low-ranked (LR) rams, and (ii) how the competition between HR and LR rams for oestrous ewes affect their courtship and mating behaviour. Hierarchy was determined using the food competition test. The five first and five last ranked rams were individually exposed to oestrous ewes in pen tests, and the frequency of different courtship behavioural units, mounts and mates, and the time from test onset to each mate was recorded. The sexual behaviour of the five first ranked and the five last ranked rams was also tested in competition, pairing a HR and a LR ram. Age, body weight, body condition score, scrotal circumference, and testis firmness and resilience from HR and LR were not different. The display of courtship behavioural units was lower when rams were tested in competition but was not affected by the rank of the rams. The number of mates per test from HR rams was lower than that observed in LR rams when tested alone. While the number of mates decreased in LR rams in competition tests, it was not affected in HR rams. In summary, there was no relation between social rank and body weight, age or testis characteristics. LR rams were more effective than HR rams when mating oestrous ewes without competition. However, in competitive tests, although all rams modified their courtship strategies, LR rams were more affected by the presence of dominant rams than HR rams were by the presence of LR rams.