DOCSLIB.ORG

The Skeletal Biology of Hibernating Woodchucks (Marmota Monax)

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

THE SKELETAL BIOLOGY OF HIBERNATING WOODCHUCKS (MARMOTA MONAX) A dissertation submitted to Kent State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by Alison H. Doherty May, 2013 Dissertation written by Alison H. Doherty B.A., University of Wyoming, 2003 M.A., Kent State University, 2007 Ph.D., Kent State University, 2013 Approved by ________________________, Chair, Doctoral Dissertation Committee Christopher J. Vinyard ________________________, Members, Doctoral Dissertation Committee William J. Landis ________________________, Walter E. Horton, Jr. ________________________, J.G.M Thewissen ________________________, Werner J. Geldenhuys Accepted by ________________________, Chair, Department of Cell and Molecular Biology Robert V. Dorman ________________________, Dean, College of Arts and Sciences Raymond A. Craig ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................... v LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................. ix ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................... xii CHAPTER Page 1 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................. 1 Hibernation ................................................................................................ 2 An Introduction to Skeletal Physiology ..................................................... 17 2 BEHAVIORAL CHANGES IN THE LOCOMOTION OF WOODCHUCKS BEFORE AND AFTER HIBERNATION ......................................................... 27 Introduction .............................................................................................. 27 Materials and Methods............................................................................. 38 Results ..................................................................................................... 56 Discussion .............................................................................................. 70 3 HIBERNATION DOES NOT REDUCE CORTICAL BONE DENSITY, AREA OR SECOND MOMENTS OF INTERIA IN WOODCHUCKS ............. 79 Introduction ............................................................................................. 79 Materials and Methods............................................................................. 83 Results ..................................................................................................... 90 Discussion ............................................................................................. 105 4 BONE DENSITY AND CROSS-SECTIONAL PROPERTIES IN ACTIVE AND HIBERNATING ADULT WOODCHUCKS ........................................... 114 Introduction ............................................................................................ 114 Materials and Methods........................................................................... 118 Results ................................................................................................... 132 Discussion ............................................................................................ 139 iii TABLE OF CONTENTS (Continued) CHAPTER Page 5 THREE-POINT BENDING TESTS COMPARING BONE STRENGTH BEFORE AND AFTER HIBERNATION IN ADULT WOODCHUCKS .......... 146 Introduction ............................................................................................ 146 Materials and Methods .......................................................................... 149 Results ................................................................................................... 156 Discussion ............................................................................................. 163 6 ANALYSES OF SEASONAL CHANGES IN BLOOD SERUM TO ASSESS BONE MAINTENANCE IN HIBERNATING AND ACTIVE WOODCHUCKS ......................................................................................... 170 Introduction ........................................................................................... 170 Materials and Methods........................................................................... 183 Results ................................................................................................... 192 Discussion ............................................................................................ 200 7 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS .............................................................. 212 Summary of the Skeletal Biology of Hibernating Woodchucks .............. 212 Bone Preservation of Hibernators and the Implications of this Work ..... 217 Future Clinical and Evolutionary Research ............................................ 220 REFERENCES ................................................................................................. 224 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1.1 The woodchuck (Marmota monax) in its active state and hibernating. ................................................................................................ 4 1.2 Intraperitoneal temperature of a woodchuck (M8) during the hibernation season 2009-2010 ..................................................................................... 4 1.3 A sagittal view of a woodchuck in September of the prehibernation season in 2009 and again in April of the posthibernation season in 2010 ........................................................................................................... 8 1.4 Wild woodchuck (CR8) implanted with an intraperitoneal body temperature logger and maximum daily ambient temperature in 2009-2010 ................................................................................................ 11 1.5 A woodchuck burrow temperature compared to outside air temperature during the hibernation season of 2011-2012 ....................... 13 1.6 Pattern of bone loss/maintenance in non-hibernating and hibernating animals during extensive inactivity ........................................................... 15 2.1 Gait diagram of a woodchuck trotting....................................................... 29 2.2 The symmetrical and asymmetrical gaits used by woodchucks with corresponding gait diagrams .................................................................... 31 2.3 A locomotion trial and the resulting data .................................................. 42 2.4 Computed tomography scans were taken of the diaphyses of the tibia, radius, and ulna approximating 50% of the length of the bone ............................................................................................... 48 2.5 Lateral radiograph of a woodchuck’s forelimb demonstrating measurements collected for estimating stresses of the ulna at maximum vertical force ............................................................................................ 50 v LIST OF FIGURES (Continued) Figure Page 2.6 Observed frequencies of symmetrical and asymmetrical gait types used by five individual woodchucks before and after hibernation ............................................................................................... 58 2.7 The range of symmetrical and asymmetrical gaits of five woodchucks ...................................................................................... 61 2.8 Speed did not differ significantly between seasons, but was significantly different between individual woodchucks by season ............ 63 2.9 Individual woodchuck fore and hindlimb duty factors were significantly different between seasons ........................................... 63 2.10 Maximum vertical force (FV) was significantly greater only in the forelimbs in the posthibernation season................................................... 66 2.11 Average compressive stress in the radius, ulna, and tibia of woodchucks was not dependent on season ............................................ 68 2.12 Both caudal and cranial bending strains in the tibia were significantly reduced in woodchucks following hibernation .......................................... 68 2.13 Seasonal average bending strains in the forearm of woodchucks .......... 69 3.1 QµCT scan locations for the long bones and mandibles of woodchucks ............................................................................................ 85 3.2 Annual variation in cortical density and mandibular resistance to bending in woodchucks............................................................................ 92 3.3 Annual variation in metaphyseal trabecular densities and bone area fraction (B.Ar/T.Ar) in woodchucks. ......................................................... 93 3.4 Relative diaphyseal cortical area and metaphyseal cortical density tended to be larger in each bone following hibernation ............... 96 vi LIST OF FIGURES (Continued) Figure Page 3.5 Seasonal differences in diaphyseal cortical density between adult and subadult woodchucks ........................................................................ 98 4.1 Longitudinal computed tomography scoutview of the femur, tibia, and humerus .......................................................................................... 125 4.2 Cortical density of tibial diaphyses significantly increased between all three seasons in a longitudinal study of captive, adult woodchucks ...... 134 4.3 There were no significant seasonal differences in cortical area or moments of inertia in the tibial diaphyses of captive, adult woodchucks ..........................................................................................
Recommended publications
  • Program & Faculty Guide

    Program & Faculty Guide

    Program & Faculty Guide UNLV School of Life Sciences UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, LAS VEGAS Contents From the Director ..................... 3 About UNLV .............................. 4 Programs .................................. 5 Facilities ................................... 7 Graduate Students ..................11 Postdoctoral Scholars ............13 Faculty Researchers .............. 15 UNLV School of Life Sciences From the Director The School of Life Sciences (SoLS) is one of the largest academic units on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) campus. It has 30 full-time faculty members, 10 adjunct and research faculty, more than 1,900 undergraduate majors, and approximately 55 graduate students. The school’s offices and laborato- ries are located in four buildings: Juanita Greer White Hall (WHI), the Science and Engineering Building (SEB), the White Hall Annex (WHA2), the Campus Lab Building (CLB). Research facilities on campus include centers for bioinformatics/biostatics with access to supercomputer facilities, confocal and biological imaging core with a new a high-speed laser-scanning microscope, genomics center, greenhouses, tissue culture facilities, environmental chambers and mod- ern animal care facilities. The faculty research and graduate programs are or- ganized into Bioinformatics, Cell & Molecular Biology, Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Integrative Physiology, School of Life Sciences Director Frank van Breukelen and Microbiology. SoLS faculty are recruited from some of the best research institutions and currently collaborate with the Nevada Institute of Personalized Medicine (NIPM), Lou Ruvo Center, Desert Research Institute (DRI), BLM, USGS, US National Park Service, and with faculty and researchers at many universities and government agencies throughout the nation and international institutions, providing ex- panded opportunities for our students. The faculty compete successfully for funding from BLM, DOE, DOI, FWS, NASA, NIH, NSF, USDA, USGS and other agencies.
  • An Extra-Limital Population of Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs, Cynomys Ludovicianus, in Central Alberta

    An Extra-Limital Population of Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs, Cynomys Ludovicianus, in Central Alberta

    46 THE CANADIAN FIELD -N ATURALIST Vol. 126 An Extra-Limital Population of Black-tailed Prairie Dogs, Cynomys ludovicianus, in Central Alberta HELEN E. T REFRY 1 and GEOFFREY L. H OLROYD 2 1Environment Canada, 4999-98 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T6B 2X3 Canada; email: [email protected] 2Environment Canada, 4999-98 Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T6B 2X3 Canada Trefry, Helen E., and Geoffrey L. Holroyd. 2012. An extra-limital population of Black-tailed Prairie Dogs, Cynomys ludovicianus, in central Alberta. Canadian Field-Naturalist 126(1): 4 6–49. An introduced population of Black-tailed Prairie Dogs, Cynomys ludovicianus, has persisted for the past 50 years east of Edmonton, Alberta, over 600 km northwest of the natural prairie range of the species. This colony has slowly expanded at this northern latitude within a transition ecotone between the Boreal Plains ecozone and the Prairies ecozone. Although this colony is derived from escaped animals, it is worth documenting, as it represents a significant disjunct range extension for the species and it is separated from the sylvatic plague ( Yersina pestis ) that threatens southern populations. The unique northern location of these Black-tailed Prairie Dogs makes them valuable for the study of adaptability and geographic variation, with implications for climate change impacts on the species, which is threatened in Canada. Key Words: Black-tailed Prairie Dog, Cynomys ludovicianus, extra-limital occurrence, Alberta. Black-tailed Prairie Dogs ( Cynomys ludovicianus ) Among the animals he displayed were three Black- occur from northern Mexico through the Great Plains tailed Prairie Dogs, a male and two females, originat - of the United States to southern Canada, where they ing from the Dixon ranch colony southeast of Val Marie are found only in Saskatchewan (Banfield 1974).
  • Translocations of European Ground Squirrel (Spermophilus Citellus) Along Altitudinal Gradient in Bulgaria – an Overview

    Translocations of European Ground Squirrel (Spermophilus Citellus) Along Altitudinal Gradient in Bulgaria – an Overview

    A peer-reviewed open-access journal Nature ConservationTranslocations 35: 63–95 of European (2019) ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) along altitudinal... 63 doi: 10.3897/natureconservation.35.30911 REVIEW ARTICLE http://natureconservation.pensoft.net Launched to accelerate biodiversity conservation Translocations of European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) along altitudinal gradient in Bulgaria – an overview Yordan Koshev1, Maria Kachamakova1, Simeon Arangelov2, Dimitar Ragyov1 1 Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences; 1, Tzar Osvoboditel blvd.; 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria 2 Balkani Wildlife Society; 93, Evlogy and Hristo Georgievi blvd.; 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria Corresponding author: Yordan Koshev ([email protected]) Academic editor: Gabriel Ortega | Received 31 October 2018 | Accepted 15 May 2019 | Published 20 June 2019 http://zoobank.org/B16DBBA5-1B2C-491A-839B-A76CA3594DB6 Citation: Koshev Y, Kachamakova M, Arangelov S, Ragyov D (2019) Translocations of European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) along altitudinal gradient in Bulgaria – an overview. Nature Conservation 35: 63–95. https://doi. org/10.3897/natureconservation.35.30911 Abstract The European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) is a vulnerable species (IUCN) living in open habi- tats of Central and South-eastern Europe. Translocations (introductions, reintroductions and reinforce- ments) are commonly used as part of the European ground squirrel (EGS) conservation. There are numer- ous publications for such activities carried out in Central Europe, but data from South-eastern Europe, where translocations have also been implemented, are still scarce. The present study summarises the methodologies used in the translocations in Bulgaria and analyses the factors impacting their success. Eight translocations of more than 1730 individuals were performed in the period 2010 to 2018.
  • Mammal Species Native to the USA and Canada for Which the MIL Has an Image (296) 31 July 2021

    Mammal Species Native to the USA and Canada for Which the MIL Has an Image (296) 31 July 2021

    Mammal species native to the USA and Canada for which the MIL has an image (296) 31 July 2021 ARTIODACTYLA (includes CETACEA) (38) ANTILOCAPRIDAE - pronghorns Antilocapra americana - Pronghorn BALAENIDAE - bowheads and right whales 1. Balaena mysticetus – Bowhead Whale BALAENOPTERIDAE -rorqual whales 1. Balaenoptera acutorostrata – Common Minke Whale 2. Balaenoptera borealis - Sei Whale 3. Balaenoptera brydei - Bryde’s Whale 4. Balaenoptera musculus - Blue Whale 5. Balaenoptera physalus - Fin Whale 6. Eschrichtius robustus - Gray Whale 7. Megaptera novaeangliae - Humpback Whale BOVIDAE - cattle, sheep, goats, and antelopes 1. Bos bison - American Bison 2. Oreamnos americanus - Mountain Goat 3. Ovibos moschatus - Muskox 4. Ovis canadensis - Bighorn Sheep 5. Ovis dalli - Thinhorn Sheep CERVIDAE - deer 1. Alces alces - Moose 2. Cervus canadensis - Wapiti (Elk) 3. Odocoileus hemionus - Mule Deer 4. Odocoileus virginianus - White-tailed Deer 5. Rangifer tarandus -Caribou DELPHINIDAE - ocean dolphins 1. Delphinus delphis - Common Dolphin 2. Globicephala macrorhynchus - Short-finned Pilot Whale 3. Grampus griseus - Risso's Dolphin 4. Lagenorhynchus albirostris - White-beaked Dolphin 5. Lissodelphis borealis - Northern Right-whale Dolphin 6. Orcinus orca - Killer Whale 7. Peponocephala electra - Melon-headed Whale 8. Pseudorca crassidens - False Killer Whale 9. Sagmatias obliquidens - Pacific White-sided Dolphin 10. Stenella coeruleoalba - Striped Dolphin 11. Stenella frontalis – Atlantic Spotted Dolphin 12. Steno bredanensis - Rough-toothed Dolphin 13. Tursiops truncatus - Common Bottlenose Dolphin MONODONTIDAE - narwhals, belugas 1. Delphinapterus leucas - Beluga 2. Monodon monoceros - Narwhal PHOCOENIDAE - porpoises 1. Phocoena phocoena - Harbor Porpoise 2. Phocoenoides dalli - Dall’s Porpoise PHYSETERIDAE - sperm whales Physeter macrocephalus – Sperm Whale TAYASSUIDAE - peccaries Dicotyles tajacu - Collared Peccary CARNIVORA (48) CANIDAE - dogs 1. Canis latrans - Coyote 2.
  • Filed As WSR 17-20-030 on September 27, 2017

    Filed As WSR 17-20-030 on September 27, 2017

    CODE REVISER USE ONLY RULE-MAKING ORDER PERMANENT RULE ONLY CR-103P (August 2017) (Implements RCW 34.05.360) Agency: Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife: 17-254 Effective date of rule: Permanent Rules ☒ 31 days after filing. ☐ Other (specify) (If less than 31 days after filing, a specific finding under RCW 34.05.380(3) is required and should be stated below) Any other findings required by other provisions of law as precondition to adoption or effectiveness of rule? ☐ Yes ☒ No If Yes, explain: Purpose: The proposal will reclassify loggerhead sea turtle from the state’s threatened subcategory (WAC 220-200-100) to state’s endangered subcategory (WAC 220-610-010). In addition, the proposal will classify the yellow-billed cuckoo under the state’s endangered subcategory (WAC 220-610-010). Citation of rules affected by this order: New: Repealed: Amended: 220-200-100 and 220-610-010. Suspended: Statutory authority for adoption: RCW 77.04.012; 77.04.055; 77.12.020; 77.12.047 Other authority: None. PERMANENT RULE (Including Expedited Rule Making) Adopted under notice filed as WSR 17-13-131 on June 21, 2017 (date). Describe any changes other than editing from proposed to adopted version: WAC 220-200-100 Wildlife classified as protected shall not be hunted or fished. Proposed corrections to common and scientific names include the following: Common Name Scientific Name sage grouse Centrocercus urophasianus sharp-tailed grouse Phasianus columbianus gray whale Eschrichtius gibbosus least chipmunk Tamius minimus yellow-pine chipmunk Tamius amoenus
  • Evolutionary History of the Arctic Ground Squirrel (Spermophilus Parryii) in Nearctic Beringia

    Evolutionary History of the Arctic Ground Squirrel (Spermophilus Parryii) in Nearctic Beringia

    Journal of Mammalogy, 85(4):601–610, 2004 EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY OF THE ARCTIC GROUND SQUIRREL (SPERMOPHILUS PARRYII) IN NEARCTIC BERINGIA AREN A. EDDINGSAAS,* BRANDY K. JACOBSEN,ENRIQUE P. LESSA, AND JOSEPH A. COOK Department of Biological Sciences, Idaho State University, Pocatello, ID 83209-8007, USA (AAE) University of Alaska Museum, 907 Yukon Drive, Fairbanks, AK 99775-6960, USA (BKJ) Laboratorio de Evolucio´n, Facultad de Ciencias, Casilla de Correos 12106, Montevideo 11300, Uruguay (EPL) Museum of Southwestern Biology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA (JAC) Pleistocene glaciations had significant effects on the distribution and evolution of arctic species. We focus on these effects in Nearctic Beringia, a high-latitude ice-free refugium in northwest Canada and Alaska, by examining variation in mitochondrial cytochrome b (Cytb) sequences to elucidate phylogeographic relationships and identify times of evolutionary divergence in arctic ground squirrels (Spermophilus parryii). This arctic- adapted species provides an excellent model to examine the biogeographic history of the Nearctic due to its extensive subspecific variation and long evolutionary history in the region. Four geographically distinct clades are identified within this species and provide a framework for exploring patterns of biotic diversification and evolution within the region. Phylogeographic analysis and divergence estimates are consistent with a glacial vicariance hypothesis. Estimates of genetic and population divergence suggest that differentiation within Nearctic S. parryii occurred as early as the Kansan glaciation. Timing of these divergence events clusters around the onset of the Kansan, Illinoian, and Wisconsin glaciations, supporting glacial vicariance, and suggests that S. parryii survived multiple glacial periods in Nearctic Beringia.
  • Growth Curve of White-Tailed Antelope Squirrels from Idaho

    Growth Curve of White-Tailed Antelope Squirrels from Idaho

    Western Wildlife 6:18–20 • 2019 Submitted: 24 February 2019; Accepted: 3 May 2019. GROWTH CURVE OF WHITE-TAILED ANTELOPE SQUIRRELS FROM IDAHO ROBERTO REFINETTI Department of Psychological Science, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho 83725, email: [email protected] Abstract.—Daytime rodent trapping in the Owyhee Desert of Idaho produced a single diurnal species: the White-tailed Antelope Squirrel (Ammospermophilus leucurus). I found four females that were pregnant and took them back to my laboratory to give birth and I raised their litters in captivity. Litter size ranged from 10 to 12 pups. The pups were born weighing 3–4 g, with purple skin color and with the eyes closed. Pups were successfully weaned at 60 d of age and approached the adult body mass of 124 g at 4 mo of age. Key Words.—Ammospermophilus leucurus; Great Basin Desert; growth; Idaho; Owyhee County The White-tailed Antelope Squirrel (Ammo- not differ significantly (t = 0.715, df = 10, P = 0.503). spermophilus leucurus; Fig. 1) is indigenous to a large After four months in the laboratory (after parturition and segment of western North America, from as far north lactation for the four pregnant females), average body as southern Idaho and Oregon (43° N) to as far south mass stabilized at 124 g (106–145 g). as the tip of the Baja California peninsula (23° N; Belk The four pregnant females were left undisturbed and Smith 1991; Koprowski et al. 2016). I surveyed a in individual polypropylene cages with wire tops (36 small part of the northernmost extension of the range cm length, 24 cm width, 19 cm height).
  • Distribution and Abundance of Hoary Marmots in North Cascades National Park Complex, Washington, 2007-2008

    Distribution and Abundance of Hoary Marmots in North Cascades National Park Complex, Washington, 2007-2008

    National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Distribution and Abundance of Hoary Marmots in North Cascades National Park Complex, Washington, 2007-2008 Natural Resource Technical Report NPS/NOCA/NRTR—2012/593 ON THE COVER Hoary Marmot (Marmota caligata) Photograph courtesy of Roger Christophersen, North Cascades National Park Complex Distribution and Abundance of Hoary Marmots in North Cascades National Park Complex, Washington, 2007-2008 Natural Resource Technical Report NPS/NOCA/NRTR—2012/593 Roger G. Christophersen National Park Service North Cascades National Park Complex 810 State Route 20 Sedro-Woolley, WA 98284 June 2012 U.S. Department of the Interior National Park Service Natural Resource Stewardship and Science Fort Collins, Colorado The National Park Service, Natural Resource Stewardship and Science office in Fort Collins, Colorado publishes a range of reports that address natural resource topics of interest and applicability to a broad audience in the National Park Service and others in natural resource management, including scientists, conservation and environmental constituencies, and the public. The Natural Resource Technical Report Series is used to disseminate results of scientific studies in the physical, biological, and social sciences for both the advancement of science and the achievement of the National Park Service mission. The series provides contributors with a forum for displaying comprehensive data that are often deleted from journals because of page limitations. All manuscripts in the series receive the appropriate level of peer review to ensure that the information is scientifically credible, technically accurate, appropriately written for the intended audience, and designed and published in a professional manner.
  • Alarm-Calling and Response Behaviors of the Black-Tailed Prairie Dog in Kansas Lloyd W

    Alarm-Calling and Response Behaviors of the Black-Tailed Prairie Dog in Kansas Lloyd W

    Fort Hays State University FHSU Scholars Repository Master's Theses Graduate School Fall 2011 Alarm-Calling And Response Behaviors Of The Black-Tailed Prairie Dog In Kansas Lloyd W. Towers III Fort Hays State University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholars.fhsu.edu/theses Part of the Biology Commons Recommended Citation Towers, Lloyd W. III, "Alarm-Calling And Response Behaviors Of The lB ack-Tailed Prairie Dog In Kansas" (2011). Master's Theses. 158. https://scholars.fhsu.edu/theses/158 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at FHSU Scholars Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of FHSU Scholars Repository. ALARM-CALLING AND RESPONSE BEHAVIORS OF THE BLACK-TAILED PRAIRIE DOG IN KANSAS being A Thesis Presented to the Graduate Faculty of the Fort Hays State University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science by Lloyd Winston Towers III B.S., Texas A&M University Date_____________________ Approved__________________________________ Major Professor Approved__________________________________ Chair, Graduate Council This Thesis for The Master of Science Degree By Lloyd Winston Towers III Has Been Approved __________________________________ Chair, Supervisory Committee __________________________________ Supervisory Committee __________________________________ Supervisory Committee __________________________________ Supervisory Committee __________________________________ Chair, Department of Biological Sciences i This thesis is written in the style appropriate for publication in the Journal of Mammalogy. ii ABSTRACT Prairie dogs ( Cynomys spp.) use alarm calls to warn offspring and other kin of predatory threats. Dialects occur when vocalizations contain consistent differences among populations not isolated by geographic barriers.
  • Distribution, Population Size, and Habitat Characteristics of The

    Distribution, Population Size, and Habitat Characteristics of The

    sustainability Article Distribution, Population Size, and Habitat Characteristics of the Endangered European Ground Squirrel (Spermophilus citellus, Rodentia, Mammalia) in Its Southernmost Range Dimitra-Lida Rammou 1 , Dimitris Kavroudakis 2 and Dionisios Youlatos 1,* 1 Laboratory of Marine and Terrestrial Animal Diversity, Department of Zoology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-54124 Thessaloniki, Greece; [email protected] 2 Department of Geography, University of the Aegean, GR-81100 Mytilene, Greece; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +30-2310998734 Abstract: The European ground squirrel (Spermophilus citellus) is an endangered species, endemic to Central and Southeastern Europe, inhabiting burrow colonies in grassland and agricultural ecosystems. In recent years, agricultural land-use changes and increased urbanization have largely contributed to a severe population decline across its range, particularly in its southernmost edge. Assessing the population and habitat status of this species is essential for prioritizing appropriate conservation actions. The present study aims to track population size changes and identify habitat characteristics of the species in Greece via a literature search, questionnaires, and fieldwork for assessing trends in population size as well as spatial K-means analysis for estimating its relation to specific habitat attributes. We found that both distribution size (grid number) and colony numbers of Citation: Rammou, D.-L.; the species decreased in the last decades (by 62.4% and 74.6%, respectively). The remaining colonies Kavroudakis, D.; Youlatos, D. are isolated and characterized by low density (mean = 7.4 ± 8.6 ind/ha) and low number of animals Distribution, Population Size, and (mean = 13 ± 16 individuals). Most of the colonies are situated in lowlands and did not relate to Habitat Characteristics of the specific habitat attributes.
  • Order Rodentia, Family Sciuridae—Squirrels

    Order Rodentia, Family Sciuridae—Squirrels

    What we’ve covered so far: Didelphimorphia Didelphidae – opossums (1 B.C. species) Soricomorpha Soricidae – shrews (9 B.C. species) Talpidae – moles (3 B.C. species) What’s next: Rodentia Sciuridae – squirrels (16) Muridae – mice, rats, lemmings, voles (16) Aplodontidae – mountain beaver (1) Castoridae – beaver (1) Dipodidae – jumping mice (2) Erethizontidae – N. American porcupines (1) Geomyidae – pocket gophers (1) Heteromyidae – kangaroo rats, pocket mice (1) Rodent diversity Order Rodentia • Dentition highly specialized for gnawing • Incisors: o single pair of upper, single pair of lower o grow continuously (rootless) o enamel on anterior surface, not posterior surface Order Rodentia • Dentition highly specialized for gnawing • Incisors • Diastema • No canines Family Sciuridae Family Sciuridae • Postorbital process well-developed • Rostrum short, arched • Infraorbital canal reduced relative to many other rodents • 1/1 0/0 1-2/1 3/3, anterior premolar sometimes small and peg-like Glaucomys sabrinus—northern flying squirrel • Can glide 5-25 meters • Strictly nocturnal • Share nests, reduce activity in winter because of cold Glaucomys sabrinus—northern flying squirrel • Conspicuous notch anterior to postorbital process • 5 upper cheekteeth Marmota spp. – marmots and woodchuck Marmota spp. – marmots and woodchuck • Rows of cheek teeth parallel, or nearly so • Postorbital processes protrude at 90° Marmota spp. – marmots and woodchuck • M. monax • M. caligata • M. vancouverensis • M. flaviventris Marmota monax - woodchuck • Posterior border
  • Identification Guide of Invasive Alien Species of Union Concern

    Identification Guide of Invasive Alien Species of Union Concern

    Identification guide of Invasive Alien Species of Union concern Support for customs on the identification of IAS of Union concern Project task ENV.D.2/SER/2016/0011 (v1.1) Text: Riccardo Scalera, Johan van Valkenburg, Sandro Bertolino, Elena Tricarico, Katharina Lapin Illustrations: Massimiliano Lipperi, Studio Wildart Date of completion: 6/11/2017 Comments which could support improvement of this document are welcome. Please send your comments by e-mail to [email protected] This technical note has been drafted by a team of experts under the supervision of IUCN within the framework of the contract No 07.0202/2016/739524/SER/ENV.D.2 “Technical and Scientific support in relation to the Implementation of Regulation 1143/2014 on Invasive Alien Species”. The information and views set out in this note do not necessarily reflect the official opinion of the Commission. The Commission does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this note. Neither the Commission nor any person acting on the Commission’s behalf may be held responsible for the use which may be made of the information contained therein. Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. Table of contents Gunnera tinctoria 2 Alternanthera philoxeroides 8 Procambarus fallax f. virginalis 13 Tamias sibiricus 18 Callosciurus erythraeus 23 Gunnera tinctoria Giant rhubarb, Chilean rhubarb, Chilean gunnera, Nalca, Panque General description: Synonyms Gunnera chilensis Lam., Gunnera scabra Ruiz. & Deep-green herbaceous, deciduous, Pav., Panke tinctoria Molina. clump-forming, perennial plant with thick, wholly rhizomatous stems Species ID producing umbrella-sized, orbicular or Kingdom: Plantae ovate leaves on stout petioles.