Incidence of freemartinism in wildlife

Kevin Robertson, [08 Sep 2023 at 13:40:01]:

Hi Everyone.

A kudu cow here in south Texas has just had twins.  Still too early to determine their sex but I'm wondering if they are a male and female, will the latter be a freemartin?  Does anyone have an answer to this?  PS I have some photos of a Cape buffalo freemartin - contact me if you'd like to see them.

Henry Labuschagne, [10 Sep 2023 at 02:17:56]:

Hi Doctari.

Hope you are well. Please post photo of buffalo freemartin.

I have not seen a freemartin in kudu but being one of a male + female twin, I am sure chances are good that she/ it will indeed be one.

You can measure her vagina depth with a probe ( you can use a test tube if no probe available ) and compare with another female calf of the same age. If she is a freemartin, her vagina depth will be much shorter than  that of a normal calf.

I would identify her and keep an eye on her development  and  scan her ovaries when she is older to see if they remain underdeveloped.

Stay safe.