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Acta Theriologica
|
2005
|
tom 50
|
nr 4
483-492
Studies on field volesMicrotus agrestis Linnaeus, 1758 in lowland grasslands have shown them to be unselective grazers. The diet of the field vole in upland Britain was investigated using feeding trials with four of the dominant British upland monocots,Molinia caerulea,Nardus stricta, Deschampsia flexuosa and Eriophorum vaginatum. The suitability of faecal analysis was assessed and then used to analyse the diet of wild voles from faecal samples. Percentages of plant species in the faeces were compared to percentages on the ground in sites dominated byMolinia caerulea, Eriophorum vaginatum,Nardus stricta andCalluna vulgaris. Significant preferences for the grassDeschampsia flexuosa were observed in feeding trials and in the wild while the sedgeEriophorum vaginatum was avoided in both. There was no clear preference forMolinia caerulea andNardus stricta. Preference for plant species was related to palatability and nutrient content. The low nutrient conditions in British uplands mean that voles that live in these environments must be selective feeders to maximise nutrient intake.
The field vole (Microtus agrestis) is characterised by extremely large blocks of heterochromatin on both the X and Y chromosome. Some other Microtus also have blocks of heterochromatin on their sex chromosomes but not as extensive and always of independent origin from the heterochromatic expansion found in M. agrestis. Coupled with evidence of geographic variation in large heterochromatic blocks within other species (e.g. in the western hedgehog Erinaceus europaeus), it might be expected that field voles would show substantial variation in size and disposition of the sex chromosome heterochromatin. In fact, only minor variation has been described up to now. Those studies conducted previously were largely on field voles from central and northern Europe. Here, we describe the karyotype of field voles from Portugal, of interest because recent molecular studies have shown field voles from western Iberia to be a separate evolutionary unit that might be considered a cryptic species, distinct from populations further to the east. The two Portuguese field voles (one female, one male) that we examined also had essentially the same karyotype as seen in other field voles, including the giant sex chromosomes, but with small differences in the structure of the Y chromosome from that described previously. The finding that field voles throughout Europe show relatively little variation in their giant sex chromosomes is consistent with molecular data which suggest a recent origin for this complex of species/near-species.
We used museum collections to study temporal trends of possible changes in skull size, body mass and body length in three species of rodents in Denmark. Skulls of adult Microtus agrestis, Apodemus flavicollis and Apodemus sylvaticus, collected between 1895 and 2004, 1847 and 2002, and 1895 and 2002, respectively, were measured and data on body mass and length were taken from the museum registers. Principal component (PC) analysis was used to combine data of the four skull measurements taken. We tested the relationship of sex, latitude, longitude, month and year of collection to PC1 by a General Linear Model (GLM). PC1, body length and body mass of M. agrestis significantly increased from west to east. In addition, PC1, body mass and body length of M. agrestis declined from summer (August) through autumn and winter to spring (March), probably due to the decline in food availability towards winter. None of the other factors examined (sex, latitude and year) were significantly related to body size. PC1 of A. flavicollis and A. sylvaticus was not significantly related to any of the environmental factors examined.
We investigated habitat selection and movement characteristics of male weaselsMustela nivalis Linnaeus, 1766 during the breeding season through radio-telemetry in Kielder Forest (KF) in order to assess how weasel movement is influenced by prey dynamics, mate searching and predation risk, and whether the scale of weasel movement corresponds to the spatial scale of the asynchronous, multi-annual vole population cycles observed in KF. Weasels used habitats with a high proportion of grass cover to a much larger extend than habitats with less grass cover and moved through the latter habitats faster and / or straighter. Habitats with high amounts of grass cover also had the highest field vole abundance, although total rodent abundance did not differ between habitats. The selection of this habitat by weasels might reflect weasels preferring field voles as prey or avoiding habitats with little grass cover and high intraguild predation risk. Five out of 8 male weasels radio-tracked had low day-to-day site fidelity and moved between different clear cuts. Three other males were resident in a single clear cut. This variation may reflect mate searching by male weasels. The observation that most weasels (5 out of 8) roamed over large areas and the scale of their dispersal potential suggests, that if they regulated vole populations, they should have a greater synchronising effect on the spatial scale of vole population dynamics than what is observed in vole populations in KF.
This study reports the light and electron microscopic examination of Trypanosoma (Herpetosoma) microti from the social vole (Microtus socialis, Rodentia) from the steppe near Askania Nova, Ukraine. Bloodstream trypomastigotes were identified morphometrically from 100 specimens from blood of 4 infected social voles. Body length ranged from 13.88-27.79 µm, and width from 0.53-2.06 µm, with the free flagellum 5.12-11.69 µm long. The trypanosomes were comparable to Trypanosoma microti from the short-tailed vole, Microtus agrestis, and the root vole, Microtus oeconomus. Cultured epimastigotes exhibited typical ultrastructural features similar to those of stercorarian and salivarian groups.
Prey individuals representing the bank vole Clethrionomys glareolus and the field vole Microtus agrestis were presented in pairs to male and female least weasels Mustela nivalis Linnaeus, 1766 in the laboratory. The voles were placed in two randomly selected boxes out of 8 boxes, which were connected to an arena housing the weasel. For each trial we recorded the finding, killing and eating order of the two prey individuals. Mate weasels tended to kill bank voles before field voles, and female weasels preferred to eat the bank vole first. Both sexes selected juvenile bank voles as the first prey to eat.
Samples of 30 dead small mammals each were collected on area ‘A’ located in eastern Poland which is exposed to flooding by the Vistula river, and on the area ‘B’, also located in eastern Poland but not exposed to flooding. Kidneys and livers of the mammals were examined by the PCR and nested PCR methods for the presence of hantavirus RNA. Out of 7 species of small mammals examined, the presence of hantaviruses was detected in 4 of them. Hantavirus prevalence was low in Apodemus agrarius (2.6%), the most numerous mammal species, whereas in the remaining 3 positive species (Microtus agrestis, Myodes glareolus, Sorex araneus) this was 12.5–100%. The presence of hantaviruses was detected only in the animals found on area ‘A’ exposed to flooding, and their prevalence was statistically greater compared to area ‘B’ not exposed to flooding (16.7% vs. 0%, p=0.0345). The overall positivity of the examined small mammals population from the areas ‘A’ and ‘B’ was 8.3%. The sequence analysis of the samples positive for hantavirus proved that the amplified products showed 77–86% homology with the L segment sequence of hantavirus Fusong-Mf-731 isolated from Microtus fortis in China. The presented study is the first to demonstrate the occurrence of hantavirus infection in small mammals from eastern Poland, and the first to demonstrate the significant relationship between flooding and the prevalence of hantaviruses in small mammals.
Habitat preference, home range size and intra-specific overlap were investigated in summer 1998 among field voles Microtus agrestis (Linnaeus, 1761) in Słowiński National Park (N Poland). Eight individuals (2 females, 6 males) were radio-tracked for one week in August. Field voles were shown to exhibit a marked preference for meadow and the ecotone between grassland and habitats with common reed, while avoiding alder forest and proper reedbeds. No significant differences between night and day in habitat-use of voles were noted. The results suggest that, at the end of the breeding season, it was food resources, rather than the risk of predation, played an important role in the voles' utilisation of space. The home ranges of males were larger and more diverse than those of females; their sizes being correlated with body mass, such that heavier males had larger home ranges. This further suggests that intra-sexual com­petition exists between males for females. The low number of females influenced their spatial behaviour, as females had completely exclusive home ranges. Four males (out of six) had overlapping home ranges with other males; three of the overlaps were of less than 20%. Attributes of promiscuity (such as a 3.5:1 operational sex ratio of males to females, intra-sexual competition between males and the territorial exclusivity of females) influenced the social system. However, the period of radio-tracking during this study was too short to define accurately the social system in the field vole population.
6 species of smal mammals have been registered In the pine forests of Bory Tucholskie and Puszcza Biała. The core of the community is formed by C. glareolus, A.sylvaticus, S. araneus and S. pygmaeus. In both forest areas, community abundance is 12 ind./100 trap-days, reaching 15 ind./100 trap-days in young forests. The reproduction of C. glareolus and A. sylvaticus falls in the middle of the reproduction range for European forests. Differences in net reproduction depend on the number of litters of overwintering females arid tire contribution to reproduction of females born during the current season.
Turzycowiska w dolinach rzecznych Puszczy Białowieskiej charakteryzują się dużym bogactwem gatunkowym drobnych ssaków. Różnorodność ta wynika ze specyficznej architektury środowisk – pasy turzycowisk kontaktują się długą linią graniczną z bogatymi ekosystemami lasu naturalnego. Wieloletnie badania pozwoliły określić preferencje środowiskowe poszczególnych gatunków drobnych ssaków i wykazać ich duże zróżnicowanie międzygatunkowe. Z badań wynika, że w miarę zarastania turzycowiska będzie zmniejszała się różnorodność gatunkowa drobnych ssaków na skutek zanikania wyspecjalizowanych gatunków siedlisk otwartych przy jednoczesnym wzroście dominacji pospolitych gatunków preferujących zadrzewienia. Dlatego ważne jest, by metodami czynnej ochrony utrzymywać otwarte siedliska i nie pozwolić im zarosnąć.
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