Celem badań była charakterystyka biometryczna i kraniometryczna borsuka (Meles meles) w zależności od płci i wieku w wybranych obwodach Zarządu Okręgowego Polskiego Związku Łowieckiego w Piotrkowie Trybunalskim. Łącznie pomierzono 29 czaszek i 23 tuszki borsuków. Do celów opracowania wykorzystano podstawowe wymiary ciała charakteryzujące wielkość osobników: długość ciała, wysokość w kłębie, obwód tułowia, masa całego ciała. Pomiar kraniometryczny dotyczył sześciu parametrów: długości profilu czaszki, maksymalnej szerokości czaszki, szerokości puszki mózgowej, szerokości ujścia tylnych nozdrzy, wysokości puszki mózgowej oraz wysokości gałęzi żuchwy. Wśród badanych borsuków stwierdzono dymorfizm płciowy, który dotyczył całkowitej długości ciała, wysokości w kłębie i obwodu tułowia. Sezonowe zmiany masy ciała borsuków wskazały, że przyrost masy ciała zależy od warunków atmosferycznych.
Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs, LA and ALA) are not synthesized in mammals in the absence of their essential fatty acid precursors. However, hibernating animals and animals sleeping through the winter need sufficiently high amounts of these acids. The Eurasian badger does not hibernate, but sleeps over winter. In the autumn the body weight of adult badgers increases even twofold, since they put on fat before the winter. Fat is deposited primarily in the subcutaneous layer of adipose tissue, and much less commonly in the muscles, liver and around the intestines. The percentage composition of fatty acids (Saturated fatty acids-SFAs, monounsaturated fatty acids-MUFAs, PUFAs) is different in particular types of tissue. The lipids isolated from depot adipose tissues (suet, subcutaneous, perirenal, periintestinal fat) are dominated by monounsaturated fatty acids (on average 41.25%), followed by saturated fatty acids (33.53%). Polyunsaturated FAs have the lowest proportion in this groups of tissues, on average 17.75% of total FAs. On the other hand, liver lipids contain over 44% PUFAs. The fatty acid composition of lipids in badgers tissue includes considerable quantities of essential unsaturated n-6 and n-3 fatty acids of great pharmacological significance.
The European badger (Meles meles) is the largest member of the mustelid family (Mustelidae) found in Poland. It lives almost all over Eurasia, except northern areas of the former Soviet Union and the Scandinavian countries. The European badger most often inhabits densely wooded areas. It feeds on both animal and plant foods, and is classified as a carnivore. Badger skins are not fully used in the fur industry They are usually used for production of skin rugs and accessories, such as hunting bags.
Activity, spatial ecology, and pattern of sett use of a mediterranean population of badgers Meles meles Linnaeus, 1758 are described. Data come from Doñana National Park (SW Spain) where a 1-year radio-tracking study and a 9-year capture-recapture study were carried out. Badger home ranges were spatially structured, territories having an average size that is the largest reported in the literature. There was a correlation between territory size and ecological variables reflecting food patch dispersion. It is suggested that badgers might set territory limits to include enough patches of rabbit burrows in the critical summer period of low rabbit abundance. Badgers were not strictly nocturnal, and showed decreased activity levels in winter. Activity levels were higher in badgers living in dry habitats, and in all badgers during the dry season. Both photoperiod and rabbit availability were suggested as factors influencing activity parameters like activity length or resting intervals during activity periods. Differences in the pattern of use of the main and secondary setts were found between reproductive females and other individuals.
We report a case of male badger Meles meles (Linnaeus, 1758) territorial expansion after the removal, by poaching activity, of a neighbouring male in an area of low badger density. The most plausible reason for the behaviour of this male is the gaining of the access to the females of the adjacent territory because: the male spent approximately half of his active time inside the new area, made a similar effort as the previous male in sleeping together with the new breeding female and did not use the summer-autumn feeding areas of the taken range. While considering that data have come from only one animal, it is discussed the key importance of female access against food resources and shelter when explaining male badger spatial behaviour, at least in low density populations.
The presence-absence polymorphism and the size of P1] were studied in the Polish population of the badger Meles meles (Linnaeus, 1758} (n = 79). P1 is more often absent than Pi. The lengths of P\ range from 0.97 mm to 2.63 mm (V = 16.3-22.3). A breach in the continuous variation of the size of the teeth between their absence and the minimum length of the crown that is 0.97 mm suggests that a threshold mechanism, related to size, operates at an early stage of P'i ontogeny. Such a mechanism would allow the development of a tooth only if it had reached the threshold size at the critical stage of its ontogeny. The correlation between the presence or absence of P!i and the number of roots of P% confirms the existence of a gradient in shape ancf size within the morphogenetic field of cheek teeth. The frequent occurrence of P i in the Polish population of the badger (73%) corresponds to the clinal variation of the presence-absence polymorphism of the first premolars in Eurasia.
We compared the habitat preferences of the alien raccoon dog Nyctereutes procyonoides (Gray, 1834) and the native badger Meles meles (Linnaeus, 1758) in two areas (Ruissalo and Tuulos) in southern Finland by radio-tracking the animals during summer from 2005 to 2008. We assumed that the habitat preferences of these two medium-sized carnivores differ to some extent (ie they are able to share the resources), because they have been sympatric for more than 50 years in southern Finland and populations of both species have increased during that period. The results indicated that the habitat preferences of these species are indeed different: raccoon dogs favoured meadows, gardens and open woodlands with tall and abundant undergrowth, whereas badgers favoured both pine forests and deciduous and mixed forests with thick canopy but sparse undergrowth. However, fields were favoured by both species in one study area (Tuulos). The results show that although both species are flexible in their habitat use and share some habitat preferences, the most favoured habitats differ between the species.
Dla borsuków Meles meles miarą jakości siedlisk leśnych może być biomasa dżdżownic oraz możliwość kopania nor. Najbardziej zasobne w dżdżownice są łąki i pastwiska, a spośród lasów grądy i olsy, natomiast najbardziej ubogie w te bezkręgowce są bory sosnowe i świerkowe. Dodatkowo, w górach biomasa dżdżownic zmniejsza się wraz ze wzrostem wysokości nad poziomem morza. Dominacja monokultur iglastych w Polsce wpływa niekorzystnie na liczebność populacji borsuków w lasach. W lasach nizinnych dostępność schronień nie jest zazwyczaj czynnikiem limitującym zagęszczenie populacji borsuków, ponieważ mogą one z łatwością kopać nory w grubej warstwie gleby. Odmiennie wygląda sytuacja w lasach górskich, gdzie wraz ze wzrostem wysokości nad poziomem morza zmniejsza się miąższość gleby, co uniemożliwia kopanie nor. W takich warunkach borsuki zmuszone są do wykorzystywania schronień alternatywnych, takich jak jaskinie i szczeliny skalne. Dostępność tego typu schronień w górach może ograniczać liczebność populacji borsuka, a ich dewastacja w trakcie prac leśnych (np. poprzez zasypywanie ich odpadami powstałymi w trakcie ścinki drzew), dodatkowo zmniejsza liczbę miejsc, które mogą być wykorzystywane przez ten gatunek.
The European badger (Meles meles) is the largest member of the mustelid family (Mustelidae) found in Poland. It lives almost all over Eurasia, except northern areas of the former Soviet Union and the Scandinavian countries. The European badger most often inhabits densely wooded areas. It feeds on both animal and plant foods, and is classified as a carnivore. Badger skins are not fully used in the fur industry They are usually used for production of skin rugs and accessories, such as hunting bags.
The spatial distribution of urine and faecal scent marks of badgers Meles meles (Linnaeus, 1758) at low population density (mean ± SE across 4 social groups was 5.73 ± 0.735 badgers/km2) in south-western England were quantified. Eighteen badger latrines (greater than one dung pit containing faeces), 74 single defecations not in pits and 21 faeces in single pits were located in spring when badgers were defending well-defined territories. Woodland was selected, and arable land avoided, for latrine sites. Pasture and built-up land was selected for single defecations not in pits whereas faeces in single pits were distributed randomly across habitat types. Faecal scent marks were strongly associated with the edge of pastoral fields rather than the middle. Forty-six and 51 urinations were located in spring and summer, respectively. Urine was deposited randomly across habitat types but was concentrated at the linear features surrounding the main setts. This is the first reported use of high levels of single defecations and urinations in badger scent marking strategies in the UK. These results are discussed in relation to the potential for transmission of bovine tuberculosis Mycobacterium bovis from badger excreta to cattle.
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