I hope someone knowledgeable will revisit this thread and adress my confusion.
I manage a colony of oviparous herbivorous (or mostly so) research subjects. When I feed them clover, they reproduce far more quickly and successfully. Is the estrogenic quality of the clover promoting ova production and embryo survival?
The failure to hatch when I deprive them of clover is nearly 100%. The thrive factor for eggs laid by clover-eating mothers who receive clover as about 15% of the diet is nearly 100%.
I will not disclose the species because I don't want anyone using clover to create breeding machines. I discovered this by accident. I didn't want more of these subjects. I had more than I could manage for a while. I stopped clover for months and egg production slowed significantly. All eggs which were produced, failed to hatch. When I reintroduced just a small amount of clover (2% of diet), they laid a higher number of eggs again, but these did not hatch. I have reduced clover to an occasional treat because they love it more than anything else, it seems. Is it truly an abortifacient? Or, is it the opposite?
I manage a colony of oviparous herbivorous (or mostly so) research subjects. When I feed them clover, they reproduce far more quickly and successfully. Is the estrogenic quality of the clover promoting ova production and embryo survival?
The failure to hatch when I deprive them of clover is nearly 100%. The thrive factor for eggs laid by clover-eating mothers who receive clover as about 15% of the diet is nearly 100%.
I will not disclose the species because I don't want anyone using clover to create breeding machines. I discovered this by accident. I didn't want more of these subjects. I had more than I could manage for a while. I stopped clover for months and egg production slowed significantly. All eggs which were produced, failed to hatch. When I reintroduced just a small amount of clover (2% of diet), they laid a higher number of eggs again, but these did not hatch. I have reduced clover to an occasional treat because they love it more than anything else, it seems. Is it truly an abortifacient? Or, is it the opposite?