Social Organization and Mating System of the Prairie Vole, Microtus Ochrogaster

Getz, Lowell L.; McGuire, Betty; Hofmann, Joyce E.; Pizzuto, Theresa; Frase, Barbara A.

doi:10.1007/978-3-0348-6416-9_7

Cited by 40 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Highly social rodents, including prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster), live in extended family groups and engage in social bonding [31,32]. When prairie voles are individually housed, the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is activated and corticosterone is released, a traditional indicator of stress; no similar activation of the HPA axis is seen in voles housed with conspecifics [33].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Social, but Not Photoperiodic, Influences on Reproductive Function in Male Peromyscus aztecus 1

Demas

Nelson

1998

Biology of Reproduction

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Nontropical rodents rely on environmental factors to restrict breeding to a specific time of the year. Among these factors, photoperiod appears to be the primary environmental cue used for predicting optimal breeding conditions. The purpose of the present study was to characterize reproductive function, as well as photoperiodic and social responsiveness in male Peromyscus aztecus, which occupy low-latitude, high-altitude habitats. In experiment 1, adult male P. aztecus were individually housed in either long (16L:8D) or short days (8L:16D) for 10 wk. Short-day mice did not differ from long-day mice on any reproductive or nonreproductive parameter. Comparisons to related Peromyscus species suggested that relative reproductive organ size and function were reduced in both long- and short-day males. Because ad libitum food and water were available, we reasoned that males in both photoperiodic conditions lacked social stimuli. To test this hypothesis, adult male P. aztecus were housed in long days either individually or with a female conspecific in experiment 2. Mice housed with females had significantly larger relative paired testes and epididymal masses, and higher testicular sperm counts and serum testosterone levels compared to those of individually housed mice. Taken together, these results suggest that social factors may play a more prominent role than photoperiod in stimulating reproductive development in laboratory-housed P. aztecus. These results are consistent with the results found for other low-latitude rodent species and suggest that P. aztecus uses a flexible rather than obligatory breeding strategy.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Social, but Not Photoperiodic, Influences on Reproductive Function in Male Peromyscus aztecus 1

Demas

Nelson

1998

Biology of Reproduction

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“…When the female of a pair dies, the male usually leaves the nest to wander within the area. GETZ et al (1990aGETZ et al ( , 1993 and GETZ & CARTER (1996) concluded that the fundamental social organization of prairie voles consists of communal groups formed from an original male-female pair or single female breeding unit by addition of philopatric offspring and unrelated adults. Philopatric offspring comprise 70% of the additions to the original breeding unit (GETZ et al 1994).…”

Section: Types Of Social Groupsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Social behavior, reproduction and demography of the prairie vole,Microtus ochrogaster

Getz

McGuire

Porges

2003

Ethology Ecology & Evolution

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“…The dispersal pattern of most mammals, and especially arvicoline rodents, is for females to be philopatric (remain near their natal site) and for juvenile males to emigrate (Boonstra et al 1987;Getz et al 1990;Wolff 1993Wolff , 1994Lambin 1994). Juvenile dispersal may have several functions (Dobson 1982) but appears to operate primarily as a mechanism to avoid inbreeding (Pusey 1987;Brandt 1992;Wolff 1993).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Age- and sex-specific responses of the gray-tailed vole, Microtus canicaudus, to connected and unconnected habitat patches

Davis-Born¹,

Wolff²

2000

Can. J. Zool.

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We monitored demography, movement, and reproductive behavior of gray-tailed voles, Microtus canicaudus, in experimental habitat patches with and without corridors to test the hypotheses that more individuals would move among patches in corridor than in control unconnected habitats, and that individuals would distribute themselves more evenly among patches if corridors were present than if they were not. We predicted that more males than females would move among patches in both treatments and that juveniles in control habitats would exhibit delayed sexual maturation if their dispersal was delayed and opposite-sex relatives remained in proximity to each other. All experiments were conducted in eight 0.2-ha enclosures planted with alfalfa that was fragmented into four patches (each 156 m 2 ) separated by 12.5 m of bare ground. In four of the enclosures, patches were connected by 1 m wide habitat corridors. Corridors facilitated movements, with males moving more than females. However, corridors did not result in an even distribution of animals in the four patches. Unconnected habitat patches resulted in female-biased juvenile dispersal, and females dispersed at a lower body mass than males in both connected and unconnected habitats. Males that did not disperse from their natal patch grew at a slower rate than those that did disperse. We conclude that movement was deterred in patchy environments, enhanced by corridors, and differentially affects males and females. Behavioral factors that affect an individual's dispersal or reproductive pattern should be considered in landscape design.Résumé : Nous avons étudié la démographie, les déplacements et le comportement reproducteur chez le campagnol Microtus canicaudus dans des parcelles d'habitat expérimentales comportant ou non des corridors, dans le but d'éprouver l'hypothèse selon laquelle plus d'individus sont susceptibles de se déplacer d'une parcelle à l'autre dans les parcelles réunies par des corridors que dans les parcelles témoins non reliées, et selon laquelle aussi la répartition des individus risque d'être plus uniforme dans les parcelles avec corridors que dans les parcelles non reliées. Nous avons prédit que plus de mâles que de femelles se déplaceraient d'une parcelle à l'autre dans les deux formes de traitement et que les juvéniles présents dans les parcelles témoins verraient leur maturation sexuelle retardée si leur dispersion était retardée et si les individus apparentés du sexe opposé restaient près les uns des autres. Toutes les expériences ont été faites dans huit arènes de 0,2-ha contenant des plants de luzerne, arènes fragmentées en quatre parcelles (chacune de 156 m 2 ), séparées par 12,5 m de sol nu. Dans quatre des arènes, les parcelles étaient reliées par des corridors de 1 m de largeur. Les corridors facilitaient les déplacements et les mâles se déplaçaient plus que les femelles. Cependant, la présence de corridors n'a pas donné lieu à une répartition uniforme des campagnols dans les quatre parcelles. Dans les parcelles d'habitat non reliées, le...

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Social Organization and Mating System of the Prairie Vole, Microtus Ochrogaster

Cited by 40 publications

References 19 publications

Social, but Not Photoperiodic, Influences on Reproductive Function in Male Peromyscus aztecus 1

Social, but Not Photoperiodic, Influences on Reproductive Function in Male Peromyscus aztecus 1

Social behavior, reproduction and demography of the prairie vole,Microtus ochrogaster

Age- and sex-specific responses of the gray-tailed vole, Microtus canicaudus, to connected and unconnected habitat patches

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