1. The question the researchers are trying to answer is whether or not the time of year has an impact on the reproductive capabilities of a male Siberian tiger. The researchers want to know if the time of year has an effect on how much sperm the male tigers are able to create and the quality of their sperm production. They predicted that the female tigers were the only ones whose reproductive system was affected by the time of year and that the males would show no variance, this was based on a previous study of a clouded leopard.
2. They gathered 5 different male tigers that were between ages 2-14 years and tested their sperm, blood and testosterone at least once a week. The independent variable was the time of year. They all were fed the same carnivorous meats, housed separately, given water and access to an outside area and a natural photoperiod. The dependent variable was the sperm specifically how much of it, its viability, sperm motility, the concentration of the sperm, it’s normal morphology and the rate penetration of the zona-free hamster eggs. They …show more content…
The information obtained from this experiment is helpful because it determines whether or not the snow leopards eat local’s livestock. The snow leopard has become almost extinct because farmers kill snow leopards believing they are eating their livestock. The experiment displays which areas of Mongolia and which particular livestock the snow leopards are eating. People can use this information to perhaps better protect these certain livestock or put measures in place to not allow the snow leopards to access this livestock. It also could be useful in showing if the snow leopards have enough of their natural prey in their environment to survive without consuming livestock. This would help with their conservation because farmers kill the snow leopards for eating their livestock. This experiment met the goal because it determined the amount of livestock that plays a role in the snow leopards