Reproductive isolation in three populations of the striped mouse <i>Rhabdomys pumilio</i> (Rodentia, Muridae) : interpopulation breeding studies

Pillay, Neville

doi:10.1515/mamm.2000.64.4.461

Cited by 15 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…The region experiences winter rainfall, with an average annual rainfall of 190 mm at our field site (C. Schradin, unpublished data). The breeding season typically lasts 3-4 months, in which females can give birth to 2-3 l (Pillay 2000), at an average of 5 pups per litter (Schradin & Pillay 2005).…”

Section: Study Site and Animalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Young But Not Old Adult African Striped Mice Reduce Their Activity in the Dry Season When Food Availability is Low

et al. 2016

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An individual′s survival and fitness depend on its ability to effectively allocate its time between competing behaviors. Sex, social tactic, season and food availability are important factors influencing activity budgets. However, few field studies have tested their influences. The African striped mouse (Rhabdomys pumilio) lives in highly seasonal habitats in southern Africa, and individuals can adopt different social tactics. We investigated seasonal changes in activity budgets of different tactics and predicted that individuals will reduce their activity in the non‐breeding season to save energy when food availability is low and that young non‐breeding adults (‘philopatrics’) invest mainly in activities related to gaining body mass to increase survival probability. We predicted old adults (‘breeders’), which bred during the previous breeding season, to invest mainly in maintenance of their social status. We conducted 90 focal observations during the non‐breeding season and 73 during the breeding season. Activity budgets of striped mice were season and tactic specific, with philopatrics, but not breeders, reducing activity when food availability was low, possibly to decrease energy expenditure. Philopatrics of both sexes foraged and basked more in the breeding season than during the non‐breeding season. Male philopatrics gained body mass and female philopatrics maintained their body mass in both seasons. Sex‐specific differences occurred during the breeding season, when female breeders foraged more than male breeders, while male breeders chased other individuals more than female breeders. These findings indicate that individuals adopting different social tactics display distinct behaviors to fulfill tactic‐specific energetic needs.

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Section: Study Site and Animalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Young But Not Old Adult African Striped Mice Reduce Their Activity in the Dry Season When Food Availability is Low

et al. 2016

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“…More recently, preliminary reports from ongoing studies have suggested even more subdivisions within the genus (Castiglia et al 2011), indicating that the taxonomy of the genus needs revision. Moreover, laboratory crosses showing reduced fertility between these proposed species and subspecies (Pillay 2000) as well as evidence of diverging sexual recognition c 2012 The Authors. Ecology and Evolution published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. signals ) tends to validate these new taxonomic subdivisions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evidence of environmental niche differentiation in the striped mouse (Rhabdomyssp.): inference from its current distribution in southern Africa

Meynard

Pillay

Perrigault

et al. 2012

Ecology and Evolution

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The aim of this study was to characterize environmental differentiation of lineages within Rhabdomys and provide hypotheses regarding potential areas of contact between them in the Southern African subregion, including the Republic of South Africa, Lesotho, and Namibia. Records of Rhabdomys taxa across the study region were compiled and georeferenced from the literature, museum records, and field expeditions. Presence records were summarized within a 10 × 10 km grid covering the study area. Environmental information regarding climate, topography, land use, and vegetation productivity was gathered at the same resolution. Multivariate statistics were used to characterize the current environmental niche and distribution of the whole genus as well as of three mitochondrial lineages known to occur in southern Africa. Distribution modeling was carried out using MAXENT in order to generate hypotheses regarding current distribution of each taxa and their potential contact zones. Results indicate that the two species within Rhabdomys appear to have differentiated across the precipitation/temperature gradient present in the region from east to west. R. dilectus occupies the wettest areas in eastern southern Africa, while R. pumilio occupies the warmer and drier regions in the west, but also penetrates in the more mesic central part of the region. We provide further evidence of environmental differentiation within two lineages of R. dilectus. Contact zones between lineages appear to occur in areas of strong environmental gradients and topographic complexity, such as the transition zones between major biomes and the escarpment area where a sharp altitudinal gradient separates coastal and plateau areas, but also within more homogeneous areas such as within grassland and savannah biomes. Our results indicate that Rhabdomys may be more specialized than previously thought when considering current knowledge regarding mitochondrial lineages. The genus appears to have differentiated along two major environmental axes in the study region, but results also suggest dispersal limitations and biological interactions having a role in limiting current distribution boundaries. Furthermore, the projection of the potential geographic distribution of the different lineages suggests several contact zones that may be interesting study fields for understanding the interplay between ecological and evolutionary processes during speciation.

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“…The food was highly palatable, with consumption comparable to the standard mouse cubes (5–8 g per day for both diets). Moreover, the post‐weaning growth rate in body mass of striped mice was similar on the formulated baseline diet (0.02–0.07 g/day; Nel et al, ) and the standard mouse cube diet (0.02–0.05 g/day; Pillay, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 83%

Protein deficiency decreases stereotypic behavior frequency and prevalence and activity in the striped mouse Rhabdomys dilectus chakae

Pillay

Rimbach

2017

Developmental Psychobiology

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Diverse motivational triggers, including diet, elicit stereotypic behavior. We investigated whether diets comprised of different protein levels but similar levels of energy were associated with the occurrence of locomotor stereotypies in the striped mouse Rhabdomys dilectus chakae. In a first experiment, 20 stereotypic and 20 non-stereotypic (10 subjects per sex and per group) juvenile (40 days old) subjects were placed on baseline (BP), high (HP) or low protein (LP) diet treatments (120 subjects in total). All subjects initially identified as stereotypic displayed stereotypic behavior in the BP and HP treatments on Days 60-63 and Days 80-83 compared to 35% and 12.5% of LP subjects, respectively. Moreover, LP subjects displayed lower levels of activity and stereotypic behavior than BP and HP subjects. Those identified as non-stereotypic never displayed stereotypy. In a second experiment, 48 individuals, bred and reared on LP and whose parents were stereotypic, were assigned to either HP (13 males, 12 females) or LP (12 males, 11 females) treatments at 50 days of age for 30 days. Stereotypy was three times less likely to occur in the LP than the HP treatment, and activity was greater in LP-HP individuals than LP-LP individuals. In both experiments, LP individuals had the lowest body mass. Striped mice adjusted their behaviors in response to dietary protein levels. Protein deficiency reduced activity and stereotypic behavior and prevalence, possibly related to an energy or neurological deficit.

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Reproductive isolation in three populations of the striped mouse Rhabdomys pumilio (Rodentia, Muridae) : interpopulation breeding studies

Cited by 15 publications

References 14 publications

Young But Not Old Adult African Striped Mice Reduce Their Activity in the Dry Season When Food Availability is Low

Young But Not Old Adult African Striped Mice Reduce Their Activity in the Dry Season When Food Availability is Low

Evidence of environmental niche differentiation in the striped mouse (Rhabdomyssp.): inference from its current distribution in southern Africa

Protein deficiency decreases stereotypic behavior frequency and prevalence and activity in the striped mouse Rhabdomys dilectus chakae

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