[justt bloomin]

Humans are generally cold-weather breeders, so why are we not concerned with all the aborted children?

[ricks_place]

LSU School of Veterinary Medicine

• Cyclicity of the cat has been determined to be dependent on photoperiod.
• Cats are "long day breeders" and require 12 hours or more of light to maintain normal cyclicity.
• Normal polyestrous behavior can be induced by controlling exposure to light.
• Cyclicity stopped abruptly and folliculogenesis was inhibited in queens exposed to less than 8 hours of light.
• Cyclicity in the cats resumed an average of 16 days after returning to a 14 hour photoperiod.
• Seasonality is more pronounced in cats subjected to natural lighting especially at higher latitudes.
• Long haired breeds tend to be more seasonal than short-haired breeds, with 90% of long-haired cats experiencing a period of anestrus compared to only 39% of short-haired cats.
• In an extensive survey of 168 queens, approximately 50% of cats cycled year-round while the remainder experienced a period of anestrus from September to the end of January.

More daylight in Spring means more kittens are on their way by summer.