Editorial Board
Publication date: November 2019Source: Mammalian Biology, Volume 99Author(s): (Source: Mammalian Biology)
Source: Mammalian Biology - December 5, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Influence of microhabitat and landscape-scale factors on the richness and occupancy of small mammals in the northern Western Ghats: A multi-species occupancy modeling approach
Publication date: November 2019Source: Mammalian Biology, Volume 99Author(s): Sameer B. Bajaru, Amol R. Kulavmode, Ranjit ManakadanAbstractHuman-dominated ecosystems are characterized by three main processes, viz., habitat degradation, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation, these posing a great threat to biodiversity. However, the relationships between these processes are not clearly understood. Moreover, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation occur at landscape-scale and their effects depend on the spatial scale. We trapped small mammals in a human-dominated area in the northern Western Ghats, India, at 23 sites in three...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 20, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
First insights into the population genetic structure and the phylogeographic status of the Mehely’s horseshoe bat Rhinolophus mehelyi (Chiroptera: Rhinolophidae) in Iran inferred from mitochondrial genes
Publication date: November 2019Source: Mammalian Biology, Volume 99Author(s): Nargess Najafi, Mozafar Sharifi, Vahid AkmaliAbstractMehely’s horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus mehelyi Matschie 1901, is a medium-sized rhinolophid with a discontinuous distribution from North Africa and southern Europe through Asia Minor, Anatolia, to Transcaucasia and Iran. Here, we present a detailed study of the phylogeography and population genetics of this species using 745 bp of the mitochondrial cytochrome b and 522 bp of the mitochondrial D-loop genes in 46 bats in eight localities in western and southwesternIran. Based on the mtDNA sequence...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 19, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Density and spatio-temporal behaviour of Geoffroy's cats in a human-dominated landscape of southern Brazil
Publication date: Available online 15 November 2019Source: Mammalian BiologyAuthor(s): Flávia P. Tirelli, Fábio D. Mazim, Peter G. Crawshaw, Ana Paula Albano, Caroline Espinosa, Diego Queirolo, Fabiana Lopes Rocha, José Bonifácio Soares, Tatiane C. Trigo, David W. Macdonald, Mauro Lucherini, Eduardo EizirikAbstractGeoffroy’s cat is a small Neotropical felid, seemingly abundant throughout most of its range and exhibiting considerable ecological plasticity. In Brazil, the species is restricted to the Pampas, one of the most threatened biomes in the country, where information on its ecology is scarce. Here we report the...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 15, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Muscle internal structure revealed by contrast-enhanced μCT and fibre recognition: The hindlimb extensors of an arboreal and a fossorial squirrel
Publication date: November 2019Source: Mammalian Biology, Volume 99Author(s): John A. Nyakatura, Roxane Baumgarten, Daniel Baum, Heiko Stark, Dionisios YoulatosAbstractIn individuals of similar body mass representing closely related species with different lifestyles, muscle architectural properties can be assumed to reflect adaptation to differing, lifestyle-related functional demands. We here employ a fibre recognition algorithm on contrast-enhanced micro-computed tomography (μCT) scans of one specimen each of an arboreal (Sciurus vulgaris) and a fossorial (Spermophilus citellus) sciuromorph rodent. The automated approac...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 12, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
First insights towards the population genetic structure and the phylogeographic status of the Mehely’s horseshoe bat Rhinolophus mehelyi (Chiroptera: Rhinolophidae) in Iran inferred from mitochondrial genes
Publication date: Available online 7 November 2019Source: Mammalian BiologyAuthor(s): Nargess Najafi, Mozafar Sharifi, Vahid AkmaliAbstractMehely’s horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus mehelyi Matschie 1901, is a medium-sized rhinolophid with a discontinuous distribution from North Africa and southern Europe through Asia Minor, Anatolia, to Transcaucasia and Iran. Here, we present a detailed study of the phylogeography and population genetics of this species using 745 bp of the mitochondrial cytochrome b and 522 bp of the mitochondrial D-loop genes in 46 bats in eight localities in western and southwesternIran. Based on the mtDNA ...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 8, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Seasonal space-use and resource limitation in free-ranging black rhino
Publication date: Available online 5 November 2019Source: Mammalian BiologyAuthor(s): Nikki le Roex, Catherine Dreyer, Pauli Viljoen, Markus Hofmeyr, Sam M. FerreiraAbstractThe spatio-temporal distribution of forage and surface water shapes space-use for many herbivore species. Herbivores must make trade-offs between critical resources such as water and forage under resource-limited conditions. The species-specific strategy employed to do so, however, varies with nutritional requirements, thermoregulation and body size. The black rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis; Linnaeus 1758) is a browsing megaherbivore that requires upwards...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 6, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Editorial Board
Publication date: September 2019Source: Mammalian Biology, Volume 98Author(s): (Source: Mammalian Biology)
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 3, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Muscle internal structure revealed by contrast-enhanced µCT and fibre recognition: The hindlimb extensors of an arboreal and a fossorial squirrel
Publication date: Available online 2 November 2019Source: Mammalian BiologyAuthor(s): John A. Nyakatura, Roxane Baumgarten, Daniel Baum, Heiko Stark, Dionisios YoulatosAbstractIn individuals of similar body mass representing closely related species with different lifestyles, muscle architectural properties can be assumed to reflect adaptation to differing, lifestyle-related functional demands. We here employ a fibre recognition algorithm on contrast-enhanced micro-computed tomography (µCT) scans of one specimen each of an arboreal (Sciurus vulgaris) and a fossorial (Spermophilus citellus) sciuromorph rodent. The automated...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 3, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Food habits of wolves and selection of wild ungulates in a prey-rich Mediterranean coastal area
Publication date: Available online 1 November 2019Source: Mammalian BiologyAuthor(s): Francesco Ferretti, Sandro Lovari, Valentina Mancino, Lucia Burrini, Mariana RossaAbstractLarge carnivores are increasing throughout the western Holarctic, re-colonising large parts of their former ranges. Ecological (e.g., predator-prey relationships) and socio-economic (e.g., livestock depredation) consequences of this process need to be monitored, to identify suitable management/conservation actions. We studied food habits and selection of main prey by wolves, as well as habitat use/selection by wild ungulates, in a Mediterranean prote...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 3, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Influence of microhabitat-scale and landscape-scale factors on the richness and occupancy of small mammals in the northern Western Ghats: A multi-species occupancy modeling approach
Publication date: Available online 1 November 2019Source: Mammalian BiologyAuthor(s): Sameer B. Bajaru, Amol R. Kulavmode, Ranjit ManakadanAbstractHuman-dominated ecosystems are characterized by three main processes, viz., habitat degradation, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation, these posing a great threat to biodiversity. However, the relationships between these processes are not clearly understood. Moreover, habitat loss and habitat fragmentation occur at landscape-scale and their effects depend on the spatial scale. We trapped small mammals in a human-dominated area in the northern Western Ghats, India, at 23 sites ...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 3, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Novel real-time PCR species identification assays for British and Irish bats and their application to a non-invasive survey of bat roosts in Ireland
Publication date: Available online 31 October 2019Source: Mammalian BiologyAuthor(s): A.P. Harrington, D.B. O’Meara, T. Aughney, K. McAney, H. Schofield, A. Collins, H. Deenen, C. O’ReillyAbstractDetection and monitoring of extant bat populations are crucial for conservation success. Non-invasive genetic analysis of bat droppings collected at roosts could be very useful in this respect as a rapid, cost‐efficient monitoring tool. We developed species‐specific real-time PCR assays for 18 British and Irish bat species to enable non‐invasive, large‐scale distribution monitoring, which were then applied to a field s...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 1, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Genetic variation among different springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis) colour variants
In this study, we aimed to 1) assess the level of genetic variation within and among the common, black, copper and white colour variants of springbok, and 2) investigate the possible genetic mechanisms involved in the coat colour of these variants. Portions of the mtDNA control region (CR) and two immune-linked Toll-like receptor (TLR4 and TLR7) genes were sequenced for the genetic diversity estimates. A 50 K Bovine SNP chip was also screened to assess the level of genetic diversity of a subset of samples. The complete melanocortin 1 receptor (MC1R) gene was targeted for the second aim. Comparable levels of diversity wer...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 1, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
The penial and bacular morphology of the solitary silvery mole-rat (Heliophobius argenteocinereus, Bathyergidae) from Malawi and evolutionary patterns across the African mole-rat family
Publication date: Available online 1 November 2019Source: Mammalian BiologyAuthor(s): Sylvie Horáková, Radim Šumbera, Jitka Sovová, Jan RobovskýAbstractThe silvery mole-rat (Heliophobius argenteocinereus) is a solitary, subterranean bathyergid rodent that lives in savannahs in Eastern Africa. Our study focuses on its penial and bacular morphology with respect to its mating strategies, degree of sociality, ovulation type and seasonality of breeding. The penis morphology fits into the trend in bathyergids, where solitary species have a more ornamented penis. Interestingly, the longest penile spines within the bathyergid...
Source: Mammalian Biology - November 1, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
Histological structure of baleen plates and its relevance to sampling for stable isotope studies
In this study, stable isotope analysis was combined with optical microscopy examination of fin whale (Balaenoptera physalus) baleen plates to understand the ontogeny of the two histological components. In both of them, the δ15N values followed a sinewave pattern along the growth axis of the baleen plate. However, the δ15N values of the cortex appeared to be advanced compared to those of the medulla. Additionally, the amplitude of the δ15N values in the oscillations was higher in the cortex than in the medulla. The histological examination revealed that these differences are caused by earlier and faster synthesis of the ...
Source: Mammalian Biology - October 25, 2019 Category: Biology Source Type: research
