Storage of sperm in the uterovaginal junction and its incidence on the numbers of spermatozoa present in the perivitelline layer of hens' eggs.

1. The numbers of spermatozoa found in the perivitelline layer (perivitelline spermatozoa) of hens' eggs during a 14-d period after insemination were found to be log-dose dependent (r = 0.99) on the quantities of spermatozoa inseminated intravaginally in these hens (50, 100, 200 or 400 million/female). 2. Highly significant correlations were also observed between the perivitelline spermatozoa and the proportion of uterovaginal sperm-storage tubules containing spermatozoa on day 14 after insemination. 3. These data confirm that the number of perivitelline spermatozoa in eggs laid on day 2 after artificial insemination (AI) are highly correlated with the mean percentages of fertility of its duration over a 14-d or 24-d period. As a consequence, eggs laid by the 10% highest or the 10% lowest females primarily classified on the basis of this variable exhibited on average 99% or 49.7% fertility, respectively, over a two-week period after AI.