Social relationships in Mastomys huberti as deduced from field and genetic analyses of multiple capture data
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Laurent Granjon
Abstract
Multiple captures (i.e., the simultaneous capture of two or more individuals in the same trap) in rodent populations provide useful information on their social structure. Adding genetic analyses to these data enables to describe social links between individuals at a finer level. Here, we analyze the distribution and composition of multiple captures obtained during a 3-year study of a population of the murid rodent Mastomys huberti in Mali. In total, 133 multiple captures were recorded, representing more than 17% of the total number of individual capture events. Seasonal variations in the incidence of multiple captures were observed, and the young (classified as juveniles or subadults) were involved in multiple captures more often than expected. Juveniles (<21 g) were captured together more often than expected, suggesting that they usually forage in groups. This trend was also observed in subadults (<31 g), accompanied by a clear deficit of captures involving one subadult and one adult of the same sex, especially in males. This pattern could illustrate a phase when negative intraspecific interactions occur, possibly linked to dispersal of subadult males. Genotypic characterization of a significant fraction of the population using 11 microsatellite loci enabled to show that individuals caught together were significantly more closely related than those involved in single captures, even when close from each other. A seasonal trend of relatedness of these co-captured animals was also confirmed.
©2008 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin New York
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Preface
- Preface
- Original Studies
- Polyandry and polygyny in an African rodent pest species, Mastomys natalensis
- Social relationships in Mastomys huberti as deduced from field and genetic analyses of multiple capture data
- Dietary selection in Mastomys natalensis (Rodentia: Muridae) in the maize agro-ecosystems of central and southwestern Tanzania
- Diversity and distribution of rodent and shrew species associated with variations in altitude on Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
- Correlating small mammal community characteristics and habitat integrity in the Caledon Nature Reserve, South Africa
- Farmer survey in the hinterland of Kisangani (Democratic Republic of Congo) on rodent crop damage and rodent control techniques used
- Ecology and ethnozoology of the three-cusped pangolin Manis tricuspis (Mammalia, Pholidota) in the Lama forest reserve, Benin
- Shrew trap efficiency: experience from primary forest, secondary forest, old fallow land and old palm plantation in the Congo River basin (Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo)
- Microgeographical distribution of shrews (Mammalia, Soricidae) in the Congo River basin (Kisangani, D.R. Congo)
- The presence of Praomys, Lophuromys, and Deomys species (Muridae, Mammalia) in the forest blocks separated by the Congo River and its tributaries (Kisangani region, Democratic Republic of Congo)
- Morphometric characterization of the Giant Pouched Rat (Cricetomys Waterhouse 1840) in the forest zone of South Western Nigeria
- Taxonomy and biogeography of the African Pygmy mice, Subgenus Nannomys (Rodentia, Murinae, Mus) in Ivory Coast and Guinea (West Africa)
- Potential mammalian reservoirs in a bubonic plague outbreak focus in Mbulu District, northern Tanzania, in 2007
- Short Note
- Sustainable small stock farming and ecosystem conservation in southern Africa: a role for small mammals?
- Book Reviews
- Book Reviews
- Meeting announcements
- 10.1515/MAMM.2008.013
Artikel in diesem Heft
- Preface
- Preface
- Original Studies
- Polyandry and polygyny in an African rodent pest species, Mastomys natalensis
- Social relationships in Mastomys huberti as deduced from field and genetic analyses of multiple capture data
- Dietary selection in Mastomys natalensis (Rodentia: Muridae) in the maize agro-ecosystems of central and southwestern Tanzania
- Diversity and distribution of rodent and shrew species associated with variations in altitude on Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
- Correlating small mammal community characteristics and habitat integrity in the Caledon Nature Reserve, South Africa
- Farmer survey in the hinterland of Kisangani (Democratic Republic of Congo) on rodent crop damage and rodent control techniques used
- Ecology and ethnozoology of the three-cusped pangolin Manis tricuspis (Mammalia, Pholidota) in the Lama forest reserve, Benin
- Shrew trap efficiency: experience from primary forest, secondary forest, old fallow land and old palm plantation in the Congo River basin (Kisangani, Democratic Republic of Congo)
- Microgeographical distribution of shrews (Mammalia, Soricidae) in the Congo River basin (Kisangani, D.R. Congo)
- The presence of Praomys, Lophuromys, and Deomys species (Muridae, Mammalia) in the forest blocks separated by the Congo River and its tributaries (Kisangani region, Democratic Republic of Congo)
- Morphometric characterization of the Giant Pouched Rat (Cricetomys Waterhouse 1840) in the forest zone of South Western Nigeria
- Taxonomy and biogeography of the African Pygmy mice, Subgenus Nannomys (Rodentia, Murinae, Mus) in Ivory Coast and Guinea (West Africa)
- Potential mammalian reservoirs in a bubonic plague outbreak focus in Mbulu District, northern Tanzania, in 2007
- Short Note
- Sustainable small stock farming and ecosystem conservation in southern Africa: a role for small mammals?
- Book Reviews
- Book Reviews
- Meeting announcements
- 10.1515/MAMM.2008.013
