Geographical clines in the size of the herb field mouse ( Apodemus uralensis )
| Autor: | Victoria Nistreanu, Alexander Csanády, Philippe Gil de Mendonça, Laima Balčiauskienė, J. Cichocki, Albina Amshokova, Linas Balčiauskas, Ana Maria Benedek |
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| Rok vydání: | 2020 |
| Předmět: |
Male
0106 biological sciences Range (biology) Species distribution Zoology Biology 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Altitude medicine Animals Body Size 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences 050102 behavioral science & comparative psychology Ecological niche Sex Characteristics 05 social sciences Cline (biology) fictional_universe fictional_universe.character_species Apodemus uralensis Europe Sexual dimorphism Skull medicine.anatomical_structure Female Animal Science and Zoology Murinae Animal Distribution |
| Zdroj: | Integrative Zoology. 15:55-68 |
| ISSN: | 1749-4877 |
| Popis: | Patterns of body size variation along geographical gradients have long been searched for and generalized into eco-geographical rules. However, no rodent species has yet been analyzed in relation to the 3 dimensions of latitude, longitude and altitude. We analyzed geographical clines and dimorphism of body and skull size in the herb field mouse (Apodemus uralensis) across the species range, based on field data and on data from the literature. Sexual dimorphism in adult A. uralensis was not expressed at a large scale, while local patterns were inconsistent. Age-dependent size changes were most expressed in adult individuals: most characters of adults exceeded in size those of subadults, while subadult-juvenile size differences were only significant in body weight and length, zygomatic skull width, length of cranial diastema and breadth of braincase. Despite central morphological niches along the clines being separated, A. uralensis populations showed a high degree of size overlap in morphological space. We found the species to be characterized by high size variability, with the largest individuals inhabiting the eastern and southern edges of the distribution range. Tail, hind foot and ear lengths were largest in the southern part of the range, in agreement with Allen's rule. The main measurements that we analyzed, namely body mass, zygomatic skull width and condylobasal skull length, show the presence of 3 clines in the size of adult A. uralensis: (i) a decreasing south-north cline, opposing Bergmann's rule; (ii) an increasing west-east cline, in accordance with Murphy's rule; and (iii) an increasing altitudinal cline. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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