Activity, overlap of range areas, and sharing of resting locations in the moon-toothed degu,<i>Octodon lunatus</i>

Sobrero, Raúl; Prieto, A. L.; Ebensperger, Luis A.

doi:10.1644/13-mamm-a-144.1

Cited by 10 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…data], implying a high frequency of social interactions and probably a need for cognitive skills underlying these interactions. In contrast, the social behavior of O. lunatus is less well known, yet a recent study revealed how these rodents live in small social groups that range from 2 to 4 adults [Sobrero et al, 2014]. Therefore, if greater sociality is associated with greater cognitive demands to keep track of individual relationships, we predicted (ii) more social O. degus to exhibit a larger DG volume and density of cells than O. lunatus .…”

Section: Model Species and Hypothesis Predictionsmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…While we were not able to determine the exact age of the subjects, we could attain approximate estimates based on body mass and condition. Trapping of O. degus included females during early and late gestation (July to August 2012), and O. lunatus during lactation (November to December 2010, 2011) [Bauer et al, 2014;Sobrero et al, 2014]. Adult-aged degus were fitted with a radio collar weighing 7-9 g (RI-2D; Holohil Systems Limited, Carp, Ont., Canada; SOM-2190A, and BR radio collars; AVM Instrument Co., Colfax, Calif., USA).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In these environments, O. degus excavate and use burrow systems connected aboveground by runways or trails used during foraging [Fulk, 1976;Lagos et al, 1995;Vásquez et al, 2002]. In contrast, O. lunatus is preferably associated with coastal shrubland, characterized by moist and high vegetative cover [Sobrero et al, 2014]. Compared with O. degus , O. lunatus seems to rely more on vegetation cover to hide from predators instead of building extensive burrow systems or using interconnected runways [Sobrero et al, 2014].…”

Section: Model Species and Hypothesis Predictionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In contrast, O. lunatus is preferably associated with coastal shrubland, characterized by moist and high vegetative cover [Sobrero et al, 2014]. Compared with O. degus , O. lunatus seems to rely more on vegetation cover to hide from predators instead of building extensive burrow systems or using interconnected runways [Sobrero et al, 2014].…”

Section: Model Species and Hypothesis Predictionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We used 5 randomly placed 50-meter transects to quantify habitat complexity in terms of the percentage of ground surface that included herbaceous cover, shrub cover, rocks or that had no cover [Sobrero et al, 2014]. We also inferred habitat complexity faced by degus from the spatial behavior of these animals.…”

Section: Habitat Complexitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of Habitat and Social Complexity on Brain Size, Brain Asymmetry and Dentate Gyrus Morphology in Two Octodontid Rodents

et al. 2016

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Navigational and social challenges due to habitat conditions and sociality are known to influence dentate gyrus (DG) morphology, yet the relative importance of these factors remains unclear. Thus, we studied three natural populations of O. lunatus (Los Molles) and Octodon degus (El Salitre and Rinconada), two caviomorph species that differ in the extent of sociality and with contrasting vegetation cover of habitat used. The brains and DG of male and female breeding degus with simultaneous information on their physical and social environments were examined. The extent of sociality was quantified from total group size and range area overlap. O. degus at El Salitre was more social than at Rinconada and than O. lunatus from Los Molles. The use of transects to quantify cover of vegetation (and other physical objects in the habitat) and measures of the spatial behavior of animals indicated animal navigation based on unique cues or global landmarks is more cognitively challenging to O. lunatus. During lactation, female O. lunatus had larger brains than males. Relative DG volume was similar across sexes and populations. The right hemisphere of male and female O. lunatus had more cells than the left hemisphere, with DG directional asymmetry not found in O. degus. Degu population differences in brain size and DG cell number seemed more responsive to differences in habitat than to differences in sociality. Yet, large-sized O. degus (but not O. lunatus) that ranged over larger areas and were members of larger social groups had more DG cells per hemisphere. Thus, within-population variation in DG cell number by hemisphere was consistent with a joint influence of habitat and sociality in O. degus at El Salitre.

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Section: Model Species and Hypothesis Predictionsmentioning

confidence: 90%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Model Species and Hypothesis Predictionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Model Species and Hypothesis Predictionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Habitat Complexitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of Habitat and Social Complexity on Brain Size, Brain Asymmetry and Dentate Gyrus Morphology in Two Octodontid Rodents

et al. 2016

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Causes and evolution of group‐living

Ebensperger

Hayes

2016

Sociobiology of Caviomorph Rodents

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Multi-year assessment of variability in spatial and social relationships in a subterranean rodent, the highland tuco-tuco (Ctenomys opimus)

O’Brien

Tammone

Cuello

et al. 2021

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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In some species, populations routinely contain a mixture of lone and group-living individuals. Such facultative sociality may reflect individual differences in behavior as well as adaptive responses to variation in local environmental conditions. To explore interactions between individual- and population-level variabilities in behavior in a species provisionally described as facultatively social, we examined spatial and social relationships within a population of highland tuco-tucos (Ctenomys opimus) at Laguna de los Pozuelos, Jujuy Province, Argentina. Using data collected over 5 consecutive years, we sought to (1) confirm the regular occurrence of both lone and group-living individuals and (2) characterize the temporal consistency of individual social relationships. Our analyses revealed that although the study population typically contained lone as well as group-living animals, individual spatial and social relationships varied markedly over time. Specifically, the extent to which individuals remained resident in the same location across years varied, as did the number of conspecifics with which an animal lived, with an overall tendency for individuals to live in larger groups over successive years. Collectively, these analyses indicate that population-level patterns of behavior in C. opimus are consistent with facultative sociality but that this variation does not arise due to persistent differences in individual behavior (i.e., living alone versus with conspecifics). Instead, based on changes in spatial and social relationships across years, we suggest that variation in the tendency to live in groups is shaped primarily by local ecological and demographic conditions. Significance statement Characterizing variation in conspecific relationships is critical to understanding the adaptive bases for social behavior. Using data collected over 5 successive years, we examined temporal variation in spatial and social relationships within a population of highland tuco-tucos (C. opimus) from northern Argentina. In addition to providing the first multi-year assessment of the behavior and demography of this species, our analyses generate important insights into relationships between individual behavior and population-level patterns of social organization. The behavioral variability evident in our study population suggests that C. opimus is an ideal system in which to explore the causes and consequences of individual differences in social behavior.

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Activity, overlap of range areas, and sharing of resting locations in the moon-toothed degu,Octodon lunatus

Cited by 10 publications

References 33 publications

Effects of Habitat and Social Complexity on Brain Size, Brain Asymmetry and Dentate Gyrus Morphology in Two Octodontid Rodents

Effects of Habitat and Social Complexity on Brain Size, Brain Asymmetry and Dentate Gyrus Morphology in Two Octodontid Rodents

Causes and evolution of group‐living

Multi-year assessment of variability in spatial and social relationships in a subterranean rodent, the highland tuco-tuco (Ctenomys opimus)

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