Social organization and biting performance in Fukomys mole-rats (Bathyergidae, Rodentia)

Van Daele, P. A. A. G.; Desmet, N.; Adriaens, D.

doi:10.1101/325720

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bioRxiv · 10.1101/325720

Social organization and biting performance in Fukomys mole-rats (Bathyergidae, Rodentia)

Van Daele, P. A. A. G.·Desmet, N.·Adriaens, D.

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Abstract

A caste system, based on work activity and reproduction, has been proposed in the two African mole-rat species which are generally considered eusocial, Heterocephalus glaber and Fukomys damarensis. Social behaviour in other Fukomys species is key to understanding evolution of sociality within bathyergids, which display a social continuum among species from solitary to eusocial. Furthermore, insight in the social structure of colonies may be instrumental in understanding the observed, extensive intraspecific morphological variation and ultimately help species delimitation. For the first, time social organisation was studied in a colony of wild-caught Fukomys micklemi (Sekute cytotype) from Zambia. Data were collected on work behaviour and analysed against morphological variables and biting performance. Although there was considerable variation in the amount of work performed by each individual, clearly distinguishable castes were not found. Castes might represent an artificial subdivision, which does not necessarily reflect the dynamic changes within a colony. Variation in work may be the result of an ongoing process of continuous change, whereby a colony undergoes a certain evolution that is reflected in developmental patterns of individuals. Ecological factors will undoubtedly play an important role in colony evolution. Consequently, predictions made according to the Aridity Food Distribution Hypothesis should be tested, taking into account the possibility of a dynamic model as described here. The relation between biting performance and behavioural traits was investigated for the first time. Whereas differences in biting performance were strongly correlated with morphological parameters, relation between work and biting performance remains unclear.

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Van Daele, P. A. A. G., Desmet, N., Adriaens, D.. 2018-05-18. Social organization and biting performance in Fukomys mole-rats (Bathyergidae, Rodentia). https://doi.org/10.1101/325720

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