dc.contributor.author |
Katandukila, Jestina V.
|
|
dc.contributor.author |
Chimimba, Christian Timothy
|
|
dc.contributor.author |
Bennett, Nigel Charles
|
|
dc.contributor.author |
Makundi, R.H.
|
|
dc.contributor.author |
Le Comber, S.C.
|
|
dc.contributor.author |
Faulkes, Christopher G.
|
|
dc.date.accessioned |
2014-08-26T07:16:13Z |
|
dc.date.issued |
2014-08 |
|
dc.description.abstract |
We investigated changes in burrow architecture and fractal dimension across
seasons and between the sexes in the solitary East African root rat Tachyoryctes
splendens over an entire calendar year. The basic burrow system comprised a main
tunnel reticulating into foraging tunnels, a nest consisting of food store chamber,
latrine and sleeping area, and a bolt hole. Main tunnel length was strongly affected
by sex, and contrary to expectations, it was longer for females than for males
(during both the dry and the wet seasons). The number and the length of foraging
tunnels were affected by both sex and season, with females’ burrows having more
foraging tunnels than males in both the dry and the wet seasons. Females also had
burrows with higher fractal dimension than males, while fractal dimension
increased with burrow length for both sexes. We suggest that unlike the solitary
bathyergid mole-rats, male T. splendens do not construct larger burrows than
females in the search for mates, but rather females have larger burrows with more
foraging tunnels resulting from the increased need for provisioning of their young. |
en_US |
dc.description.embargo |
2015-08-31 |
|
dc.description.librarian |
hb2014 |
en_US |
dc.description.sponsorship |
University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) World Bank Fund (C1B1 of the University of Dar as Salaam, Tanzania. NCB acknowledges funding from the South African DST/NRF SARChI Chair for Mammal Behavioural Ecology and Physiology,University of Pretoria. |
en_US |
dc.description.uri |
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1469-7998 |
en_US |
dc.identifier.citation |
Katandukila, JV, Chimimba, CT, Bennett, NC, Makundi, RH, Le Comber, SC & Faulkes, CG 2014, 'Sweeping the house clean : burrow architecture and seasonal digging activity in the East African root rat from Tanzania', Journal of Zoology, vol. 293, no. 4, pp. 271-280. |
en_US |
dc.identifier.issn |
0952-8369 (print) |
|
dc.identifier.issn |
1469-7998 (online) |
|
dc.identifier.other |
10.1111/jzo.12143 |
|
dc.identifier.uri |
http://hdl.handle.net/2263/41592 |
|
dc.language.iso |
en |
en_US |
dc.publisher |
Wiley |
en_US |
dc.rights |
© 2014 The Zoological Society of London. |
en_US |
dc.subject |
Tachyoryctes splendens |
en_US |
dc.subject |
Burrow architecture |
en_US |
dc.subject |
Subterranean rodent |
en_US |
dc.subject |
Mole-rat |
en_US |
dc.subject |
Fractal dimension |
en_US |
dc.subject |
Root rat |
en_US |
dc.title |
Sweeping the house clean : burrow architecture and seasonal digging activity in the East African root rat from Tanzania |
en_US |
dc.type |
Postprint Article |
en_US |