Maternal performance of inbred and hybrid laboratory mice (Mus musculus).

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Abstract
Sixty primiparous female mice from 3 inbred strains (A/J, DBA/2J, C57BL/6J) and their reciprocal crosses were subjected to various tests of maternal behavior. During pregnancy the mother was placed in a seminaturalistic environment and her nest-building activity was assessed. Following parturition the retrieval behavior of the mother was measured under conditions that placed conflicting demands on her behavioral repertoire. The results indicate that there were both qualitative and quantitative differences between inbred and hybrid animals. Prenatal nest-building activity showed heterosis on various measures of relevant environmental manipulations. The retrieval data suggest that inbred animals were less able to integrate their behavior into a coherent pattern. The level of inbreeding of the pups had no significant effect on the aspects of maternal behavior measured in the study.