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INTRODUCTION: The morphological study of wild animals serves as a base for more advanced studies in clinical medicine, surgery, and pathology. Due to an urgent need and demand for professionals specialized in this area, studies of this nature have become indispensable and so the objective of the present study was to describe the heart morphology of Callithrix jacchus. METHODS: Ten anatomic pieces of common marmoset were used. The hearts were removed and dissected for better visualization and thus to makes a detailed description of the structures of the organ of the C jacchus species. RESULTS: The C jacchus heart is similar to that of other mammals, with small anatomical modifications such as division of the apex by the interventricular grooves, shallow fossa ovalis, and less salient intervenous tubercle. CONCLUSIONS: This study may serve as taxonomic base for research and also as a basis for clinical and surgical procedures with the C jacchus.

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With the objective of assessing the influence of scrotum bipartition on scrotum-testiclar thermoregulation and semen quality in sheep native to a semiarid region, 14 adult crossbred rams were placed into groups, GI (7 with bipartition in the scrotum) and GII (7 without bipartition). Images were taken of the caudal scrotum surface using a Fluke (Ti25®) thermographic camera, for temperature analysis. Two semen collections were made, at an eight-day interval, by electroejaculation, to analyze macroscopic and microscopic parameters. It was observed that the surface temperatures of the proximal, medial and distal regions of the testicle and the epididymis tail did not present significant statistical difference (p > 0.05) between the groups. The GI showed a great ability to regulate the temperature in the tail region of the epididymis (p = 0.062), location of the bipartition, and the difference in temperature between the body surface and the epididymis tail was 0.54 °C much lower than the G2. Although no significant statistical difference (p > 0.05) was observed, the animals with bipartition presented higher means for body surface temperature, showing greater efficiency in heat dissipation and indicating that these animals used peripheral vasodilation on a larger scale to eliminate excess heat and thus had a lower energy expenditure. The semen parameters studied in both groups were within the desirable values for the species, with no differences between the groups (p > 0.05). Higher scrotum testiclar values were observed (scrotum circumference GI = 30.40 cm ±â€¯0.53 and GII = 28.42 ±â€¯1.13 cm, testicle length, right and left, respectively GI = 8.14 ±â€¯0.90 cm, 8.00 ±â€¯0.00 cm and GII = 7.28 ±â€¯0.04 cm, 7.28 ±â€¯0.48 cm) and bodyweight (GI = 44.57 ±â€¯5.25 Kg and GII = 39.85 ±â€¯1.57 Kg) in rams with scrotum bipartition (p > 0.05). It is concluded that scrotum bipartite in rams was shown to be an evolutionary indicator showing that animals with this characteristic dissipate heat more efficiently, have bigger scrotum-testicle biometrical parameters and heavier body weight. However, as the rams with scrotum bipartite presented division of less than 50% of the scrotum length, this degree did not influence the scrotum surface temperature and semen quality, as has been observed in goats with the same characteristic.

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Goats and sheep have morphological characteristics for adaptation to desert and semiarid regions. The appearance of scrotum division known as scrotum bipartition has already been reported in goats. This anatomy increases the surface of each testicle exposed to environmental temperature, favoring heat dissipation and improving reproductive efficiency. Considering that there are already studies on the goat species demonstrating the presence of this characteristic as an influence on reproductive parameters, the prevalence of scrotum bipartition was estimated in the sheep herds reared in the municipality of Patos, Paraiba backwoods, Brazil. A total of 331 rams were examined from farms in four municipalities in the micro-region of Patos, Paraiba, Brazil, and the same study was also carried out at the municipal slaughterhouse in this city, where 456 animals were examined. According to the analysis, 66.67% of the farms visited presented one or more sheep with scrotum bipartition, with a prevalence of 11.48% on the farms and 14.47% at the slaughterhouse. The degree of bipartition was 9.59 ± 1.035% of the total scrotum length for the animals in the field and 12.89 ± 0.749% for those from the slaughterhouse, characterizing bipartition of less than 50% of the scrotum length. The variables intensive rearing (OR = 16.6) and the Dorper breed (OR = 6.91) were identified as factors associated to the presence of scrotum bipartition. It was concluded that scrotum bipartition is a characteristic present in sheep reared in the municipality of Patos in the semiarid region of Paraiba state, northeastern Brazil, and high prevalence was observed of farms with bipartition sheep, but a low number of animals with scrotum bipartition was identified.