{"title":"Responsive strategies of three sympatric small rodents to the altitudinal effects on microhabitats","authors":"Jae-Kang Lee, Tae-Kyung Eom, Ho-Kyoung Bae, Dong-Ho Lee, Shin‐Jae Rhim","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10068","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10068","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000This study evaluated the effects of altitudinal gradients on small-rodent populations and microhabitat conditions. We selected three altitudinal bands: lowland, mid-land, and highland. We captured three small-rodent species, the striped field mouse (Apodemus agrarius), the Korean field mouse (A. peninsulae), and the red-backed vole (Myodes regulus). A. agrarius preferred microhabitats with dense ground vegetation and sparse mid-story vegetation, basal area, downed trees, and stone coverage. A. peninsulae utilized ground vegetation, overstory vegetation, and downed trees. M. regulus occupied microhabitats with abundant stone coverage and little ground vegetation coverage. Ground vegetation coverage was higher in the mid-land. The lowland was characterized by high understory vegetation, bulky downed trees, and high stone coverage. A. agrarius mostly occupied the mid-land, whereas A. peninsulae and M. regulus mainly inhabited the lowland. Our results show that each small-rodent species had its own strategy for utilizing the key habitat factors in altitudinally affected microhabitats and for reducing competition among the populations. This finding contributes to improving knowledge of the ecological altitudinal features of microhabitat conditions, as well as the altitudinal distributions and abundances of three small-rodent species.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-02-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42202133","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Animal BiologyPub Date : 2022-02-08DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10069
C. Giannetto, R. D. Cerutti, M. C. Scaglione, A. Sciabarrasi, Melissa Pennisi, G. Piccione
{"title":"Amplitude of the daily pattern of rest – activity in different species of Leopardus kept in captivity","authors":"C. Giannetto, R. D. Cerutti, M. C. Scaglione, A. Sciabarrasi, Melissa Pennisi, G. Piccione","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10069","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10069","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Closer examination of the diurnal or nocturnal nature of wildlife species improves the knowledge necessary for landscape identity and biodiversity preservation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the daily rhythmicity of total locomotor activity in wild felids of several species of Leopardus of similar body weight housed in captivity: Geoffroy’s cat (Leopardus geoffroyi), ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), oncilla (Leopardus tigrinus) and margay (Leopardus wiedii). Twenty-four felids, six animals for each species, were housed under a natural light/dark cycle. The activity was recorded for thirteen consecutive days by means of an actimeter attached to a neck collar. Using cosinor rhythmometry, circadian rhythmic parameters (mesor, amplitude and acrophase) were assessed and compared among the several species. The daily and individual chronobiological variations of rest and activity showed a well-defined pattern. A nocturnal daily rhythmicity of locomotor activity was observed in Geoffroy’s cat, ocelot, oncilla and margay. The acrophase was observed shortly after midnight in margay and Geoffroy’s cat, and early at night in oncilla and ocelot. Our results improve the knowledge about the circadian system in wild animals. They can be a contribution to understanding the adaptive behaviour of wild felid species kept in zoological parks and rehabilitation agencies in providing the proper care for these animals","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-02-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41706258","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Animal BiologyPub Date : 2022-02-02DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10066
U. N. S. Daud, N. Ismail, S. M. Nor, M. S. Mansor
{"title":"Biparental incubation behavior in the domestic house-farmed swiftlets (Aerodramus sp.) in central Peninsular Malaysia","authors":"U. N. S. Daud, N. Ismail, S. M. Nor, M. S. Mansor","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10066","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10066","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000While the breeding biology of the edible-nest swiftlet Aerodramus fuciphagus has previously been studied, research has been limited to direct observations made on cave colonies and details on their incubation behavior remain unknown. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the biparental investment of domestic house-farmed white-nest swiftlets Aerodramus sp. during incubation. This study was conducted at a swiftlet house farm in Bentong, Pahang, central Peninsular Malaysia, from August 2019 to July 2020. An infrared camera connected to a digital video recorder was installed inside the house farm to monitor swiftlets’ daily activities. We determined that the time required for swiftlets to incubate their eggs was 23 ± 0.73 days, while the hatching success rate was 75%. Swiftlets exhibit intermittent incubation with fluctuations in incubation rate from egg-laying until hatching. Both parents incubate equally, with males notably incubate longer at night and females in the morning. The incubation period is influenced by clutch size; parents incubating two eggs have a shorter incubation period than parents that incubating a single egg. Parents alternately exchanged incubation roles when both sexes attended the nest, which often occurred in the early morning before the first emergence period and during nightfall after swiftlets returned to their nests. We identified two behavioral signals during parental exchange: (1) volunteering to move aside and allowing the partner to incubate and (2) being forced by the partner to move aside. The information provided by this study can be useful to bird-nest farmers, who can use it to increase their swiftlet populations by reducing the fatality of nestlings and maintaining a sustainable yield of harvesting.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-02-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48563116","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Animal BiologyPub Date : 2021-12-30DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10065
Xin Yu, Akalili B.T. Mohd Zanudin, Mohd Uzair Rusli, D. Booth, J. Lei
{"title":"Diet reflects opportunistic feeding habit of the Asian water monitor (Varanus salvator)","authors":"Xin Yu, Akalili B.T. Mohd Zanudin, Mohd Uzair Rusli, D. Booth, J. Lei","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10065","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10065","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000The Asian water monitor (Varanus salvator) is a large generalist predator and scavenger lizard. This species has a widespread distribution throughout South and Southeast Asia and is frequently encountered around the edges of urban settlements. Here, we present information on diet diversity and habitat utilisation of a population of Asian water monitors inhabiting the University of Malaysia Terengganu campus located on the east coast of mainland Malaysia. The stomach contents of 30 Asian water monitors were examined by stomach flushing, and 47.6% of stomach contents was mangrove crab, 26.2% was human waste and 26.2% was other natural foods consisting of fruits, fishes, leeches, snails, birds and insects. We then recorded the locations and habitats utilised by patrolling the campus area and found Asian water monitors preferred to use water and mangrove forest habitats that fringed and crisscrossed the campus. The broad diversity of stomach contents reflected food available at this location and indicates the opportunistic feeding habit of this species. Given that this species widely distributed in Southeast Asia, its broad diet diversity and habitat variations may promote the adaptation of Asian water monitor to different environments.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45453615","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Animal BiologyPub Date : 2021-12-30DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10063
H. Takada, Akiyoshi Sato, S. Katsuta
{"title":"Food habits of two species of tube-nosed bats, Murina hilgendorfi and Murina ussuriensis, in Hayakawa, central Japan","authors":"H. Takada, Akiyoshi Sato, S. Katsuta","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10063","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10063","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Knowledge of food habits is essential for understanding the life history of a species; however, such information about the enigmatic Murina genus of bats is little known. In this study, we examined the food habits of Murina hilgendorfi and Murina ussuriensis over four years in Hayakawa, central Japan, using traditional morphological fecal analysis. Fragments of arthropods of six orders (five identified families), and of five orders (five identified families), were found in the feces of M. hilgendorfi and M. ussuriensis, respectively. Both species consumed wingless arthropods (caterpillars and spiders), insects that rarely fly (ground beetles and bush crickets), or diurnal insects (dragonflies and hoverflies; i.e., that are resting at night) during the night, which is a clear indication of gleaning behavior in these bats. In spring, the large-bodied M. hilgendorfi more frequently consumed hard-bodied insects such as beetles and bush crickets, whereas the small-bodied M. ussuriensis more frequently consumed soft-bodied insects such as caterpillars, moths, spiders, and dipterans, suggesting that the body size difference influences their food habits, which may have contributed to food resource partitioning between these closely related bats. For M. hilgendorfi, beetles were the main prey in spring and autumn, while caterpillars and grasshoppers were more frequently consumed in spring and autumn, respectively, suggesting that they may have changed prey items according to seasonal fluctuations in food availability. To our knowledge, this study provides the first record of differences in the food habits of these two species.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44786749","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Animal BiologyPub Date : 2021-12-30DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10064
T. Madhu, K. M. Mohan
{"title":"Effect of host plants on the oviposition preference of pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypiella (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae)","authors":"T. Madhu, K. M. Mohan","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10064","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10064","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders, 1843)) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) is an important pest of cotton. We aimed to study the effect of different host plants on the oviposition preference of pink bollworm under laboratory conditions. Cotton (Bt and non-Bt), okra and hibiscus plants were used, which vary in morphological characteristics. Significant differences were observed in the density of trichomes and it is positively correlated with oviposition behaviour of pink bollworm. In a no-choice test, we recorded a higher number of eggs on Bt and non-Bt cotton plants. In two-, three- and four-choice experiments, pink bollworm preferred to deposit the maximum number of eggs on non-Bt cotton among other host plants. A substantially higher number of eggs were laid on Bt cotton in combinations with okra and hibiscus and a considerably lower number on non-Bt cotton. We recorded fewer numbers of eggs on hibiscus in all combinations. Overall, pink bollworm moths showed greater affinity towards non-Bt cotton plants and deposited the maximum number of eggs there. From the practical point of view, the development of cotton genotypes which are devoid or have a lesser density of trichomes may be a possible solution to reduce the pink bollworm egg load on cotton.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48247724","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Variations of body mass and thermogenesis properties in Eothenomys olitor during cold acclimatization","authors":"Ya-zuo Yang, Chun-yan Han, Ting Jia, Zheng-kun Wang, Wan-long Zhu, Hao Zhang","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10062","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10062","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000The set-point hypothesis states that there is a biological control method in mammals that actively regulates weight toward a predetermined set weight for each individual, which may occur by regulation of energy intake or energy expenditure. In order to investigate the effects of low temperature on body mass regulation in Eothenomys olitor, body mass, body fat mass, food intake, resting metabolic rate (RMR), non-shivering thermogenesis (NST), serum leptin levels, morphology, biochemical indexes of liver and brown adipose tissue (BAT) and hypothalamic neuropeptide genes expression were measured during cold acclimatization. The results showed that there was no significant difference in body mass, but food intake, RMR and NST increased during cold acclimatization. Cytochrome c oxidase (COX) and α-glycerophosphate oxidase (α-GPO) activities in liver and BAT were significantly enhanced during cold acclimatization, and triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4) levels in serum were significantly higher than those in the control group. Serum leptin levels decreased after cold acclimatization. Low temperature significantly increased the expression of neuropeptide Y (NPY) and agouti-related peptide (AgRP), while it decreased cocaine- and amphetamine-regulated transcript peptide (CART) and pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) expressions. All of the above results suggested that body mass in E. olitor can remain relatively stable at low temperature, which conforms to the ‘set-point hypothesis’. However, the species showed differences with sympatric species, such as E. miletus, Apodemus chevrieri and Tupaia belangeri. Moreover, E. olitor can cope with low temperature by increasing its metabolic rate and thermogenesis properties.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-11-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42638097","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Animal BiologyPub Date : 2021-11-18DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10061
A. Csanády, L. Mošanský
{"title":"Sex and age differences in skull size in Myodes glareolus from Slovakia","authors":"A. Csanády, L. Mošanský","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10061","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10061","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000The results of a craniometric analysis of the bank vole (Myodes glareolus) were evaluated in this study. Twenty cranial variables were measured and evaluated on 149 skulls (78 males, 71 females) with respect to sex and age. The main aim of this study was to test the sexual dimorphism in skull size. Overall, our results showed that on average, the values for adult and subadult females of M. glareolus were higher than for males. Results presented here thus reveal sexual differences in the measured cranial traits, most expressed for the length of the mandible and the height of the mandible. The effect size was very large for the length of the first upper molar. Comparison of our results with those from other countries confirmed that there are regional differences. These findings highlight the need for craniometric analysis of species also at the regional level.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-11-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43307014","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Animal BiologyPub Date : 2021-11-18DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10060
Claudiane S. Ramalheira, M. M. Cabral, V. D. da Silva, F. Rosas
{"title":"Giant otter behaviour in a mega-hydroelectric reservoir, Central Amazon, Brazil","authors":"Claudiane S. Ramalheira, M. M. Cabral, V. D. da Silva, F. Rosas","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10060","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10060","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000We tracked thirteen giant otters from three different groups in the Balbina Hydroelectric Reservoir. One of them was a transient animal, while the others were living in groups of five and seven individuals. Travelling was the most frequent behaviour, both for the transient otter (>40%) and group otters (46%). Diurnal resting was the longest-lasting behaviour. Most giant otter behaviour in the reservoir showed little difference when compared with the behaviour of giant otters living in nondammed areas, indicating a significant degree of resilience of this species. However, otters in the reservoir spent more time travelling, probably because their territory sizes were much greater than the territories of giant otters in nondammed areas. The frequency of fishing was similar to what has been recorded elsewhere, suggesting that current fish density and availability in the reservoir is similar to what is observed in nondammed areas. Nevertheless, otters in Balbina spent more time fishing than those in nondammed areas, which alternatively could suggest that fish density in the reservoir was low and could be compensated by increasing the time spent fishing. The high frequency of intraspecific kleptoparasitism observed in this study (62%) is noteworthy, although virtually undocumented for this species. This is the first study of giant otter behaviour in a hydroelectric reservoir that can be used for the conservation of this endangered species in man-made lakes.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-11-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"64955949","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Animal BiologyPub Date : 2021-10-07DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10057
S. S. Hosseinian Yousefkhani
{"title":"Conservation biology of the critically endangered salamander, Paradactylodon persicus gorganensis (Clergue-Gazeau & Thorn, 1979) (Amphibia: Hynobiidae) in northeastern Iran","authors":"S. S. Hosseinian Yousefkhani","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10057","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10057","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Paradactylodon persicus gorganensis is a critically endangered salamander found in northeastern Iran which faces increasing major anthropogenic threats such as agriculture, industry and mining. The aim of the current study is to identify key environmental variables associated with the species’ presence. Also, measuring and comparing the water quality parameters in habitats where P. p. gorganensis is present and absent are the other aims of the study. The results indicate that high pH and dissolved oxygen values have a negative effect on the species’ presence, while its presence was strongly correlated with low mean water temperatures. The species’ range in response to the climate change will shift to the south and east, where areas of high elevation occur, because the species favors cold habitats. This study indicates that it will be particularly important to evaluate the whole range where P. p. gorganensis exists when preparing conservation action plans. It is recommended that ex-situ conservation programs are incorporated into conservation planning for the species, because the number of individuals in the wild is so low and their future viability is fragile.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2021-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43770296","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}