Circle of life: the common hamster (Cricetus cricetus) adaptations to the urban environment
| Autor: | Nikolay N. Tovpinetz, Ekaterina V. Potashnikova, Alexey Yu. Tsellarius, Elena A. Zaytseva, E. V. Kuznetsova, Alexandr V. Kuptsov, Alexey V. Surov, Elena A. Katzman, Pavel L. Bogomolov, Alexandra S. Sayan, Natalia Yu. Feoktistova |
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| Rok vydání: | 2019 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
Male Hamster Zoology Biology 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Life history theory Urban forestry Urbanization Cricetinae Hibernation Animals 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences 050102 behavioral science & comparative psychology Cities Ecosystem 05 social sciences Biota Adaptation Physiological Kazakhstan Europe Food resources Habitat Animal Science and Zoology Female Seasons Urban environment |
| Zdroj: | Integrative zoology. 14(4) |
| ISSN: | 1749-4877 |
| Popis: | Traditionally, urbanization has been seen as a negative phenomenon for biota. However, changes in the environmental parameters induced by urbanization might be favorable for some species. Over the past half-century, the common hamster has actively populated cities, establishing populations in some European, Russian and Kazakhstan cities. Based on integrative methods, we investigated free-range common hamsters inhabiting Simferopol from 2015 to 2018 to reveal possible adaptations to the urbanized environment across several parameters, including lifespan, hibernation period, reproductive activity and body mass. Results show that in urban areas, the common hamster demonstrates an extremely short hibernation period compared to other localities, possibly due to enhanced food resources from urban forestry (walnuts, locus and hazelnut), allowing the species to start breeding very early (February) and finish as late as October. We present the first evidence of polyandry for this species: mating of receptive females with several males and subsequent confirmation of multiple paternity. Despite high reproductive potential, the lifespan of the common hamster in urban conditions is generally very short (less than 1 year). We speculate that in the process of synurbization, the common hamster's innate plasticity across many life history traits permits it to successfully colonize throughout a wide range of habitats, with the ability to form novel adaptations to urban environments. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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