Competition to achieve paternity has coerced the development of a multitude of male reproductive strategies. In one of the most well-studied examples, the spermatozoa of all mammalian species must undergo a series of physiological changes as they transit the male (epididymal maturation) and female (capacitation) reproductive tracts prior to realizing their potential to fertilize an ovum. However, the origin and adaptive advantage afforded by these intricate processes of post-testicular sperm maturation remain to be fully elucidated. Here, we review literature pertaining to the nature and the physiological role of epididymal maturation and subsequent capacitation in comparative vertebrate taxa including representative species from the avian, reptilian, and mammalian lineages. Such insights are discussed in terms of the framework they provide for helping to understand the evolutionary significance of post-testicular sperm maturation.

为获得亲子关系而进行的竞争迫使许多男性生殖策略的发展。在一个研究最充分的例子中，所有哺乳动物的精子在通过雄性（附睾成熟）和雌性（获能）生殖道之前，必须经历一系列生理变化，然后才能发挥其使卵子受精的潜力。然而，这些睾丸后精子成熟过程的复杂过程所提供的起源和适应性优势仍有待充分阐明。在这里，我们审查有关附睾成熟和随后的获能在比较脊椎动物分类群中的性质和生理作用的文献，这些比较分类群包括来自鸟类，爬行动物和哺乳动物谱系的代表性物种。