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Research Articles (Mammal Research Institute): Recent submissions

  • Formidable females redux: male social integration into female networks and the value of dynamic multilayer networks 
    Bonnell, Tyler R.; Vilette, Chloe; Young, Christopher; Henzi, Stephanus Peter; Barrett, Louise (Oxford University Press, 2021-02)
    The development of multilayer network techniques is a boon for researchers who wish to understand how different interaction layers might influence each other, and how these in turn might influence group dynamics. Here, we ...
  • Hyaenas play unique ecosystem role by recycling key nutrients in bones 
    Abraham, Andrew J.; Webster, Andrea B.; Jordaan, Jessica; Prys-Jones, Tomos O.; Ganswindt, Andre; De Jager, P.C. (Pieter Christiaan); Doughty, Christopher E. (Wiley, 2022-03)
    No abstract available.
  • Shrews (Mammalia, Eulipotyphla) from a biodiversity hotspot, Mount Nimba (West Africa), with a field identification key to species 
    Christiane, Denys; Jacquet, Francois; Kadjo, Blaise; Missoup, Alain Didier; Aniskine, Vladimir; Gouy de Bellocq, Joelle; Soropogui, Barre; Douno, Mory; Sylla, Morlaye; Nicolas, Violaine; Lalis, Aude; Monadjem, Ara (BioOne, 2021-11-30)
    In this study, we collected 226 shrew specimens originating from 16 localities on the Guinean and Liberian sides of Mount Nimba. We surveyed all major vegetation zones from 400 to 1600 m above sea level (asl), including ...
  • Similarities between lions and sympatric carnivores in diel activity, size and morphology 
    Greco, Ilaria; Chizzola, Maddalena; Meloro, Carlo; Swanepoel, Lourens; Tamagnini, Davide; Dalerum, Fredrik (Associazione Teriologica Italiana, 2021)
    Temporal separation in diel activity between species can be caused either by different realized niches or by competition avoidance. Morphologically similar species tend to have similar ecological niches. Therefore, ...
  • Understanding continent-wide variation in vulture ranging behavior to assess feasibility of vulture safe zones in Africa : challenges and possibilities 
    Kane, Adam; Monadjem, Ara; Aschenborn, H.K. Ortwin; Bildstein, Keith; Botha, Andre; Bracebridge, Claire; Buechley, Evan R.; Buij, Ralph; Davies, John P.; Diekmann, Maria; Downs, Colleen T.; Farwig, Nina; Galligan, Toby H.; Kaltenecker, Gregory; Kelly, Chris; Kemp, Ryno; Kolberg, Holger; MacKenzie, Monique L.; Mendelsohn, John; Mgumba, Msafiri; Nathan, Ran; Nicholas, Aaron; Ogada, Darcy; Pfeiffer, Morgan B.; Phipps, W. Louis; Pretorius, Mattheuns D.; Rosner, Sascha; Schabo, Dana G.; Shatumbu, Gabriel Lita; Spiegel, Orr; Thompson, Lindy J.; Venter, Jan A.; Virani, Munir Z.; Wolter, Kerri; Kendall, Corinne J. (Elsevier, 2022-04)
    Protected areas are intended as tools in reducing threats to wildlife and preserving habitat for their long-term population persistence. Studies on ranging behavior provide insight into the utility of protected areas. ...
  • The cost of reproduction in a cooperatively breeding mammal : consequences of seasonal variation in rainfall, reproduction, and reproductive suppression 
    Jacobs, Paul Juan; Hart, Daniel William; Suess, Tobias; Janse van Vuuren, Andries Koch; Bennett, Nigel Charles (Frontiers Research Foundation, 2021-11-19)
    Biological investments, such as reproduction, are influenced by both biotic and abiotic factors and their interactions. The trade-off between reproduction and survival has been well established. Seasonally breeding ...
  • An impact assessment of alien invasive plants in South Africa generally dispersed by native avian species 
    Bitani, Nasiphi; Shivambu, T.C. (Tinyiko); Shivambu, Ndivhuwo; Downs, Colleen T. (Pensoft Publishers, 2022-07)
    Invasive alien plant species have been identified as a major threat to biodiversity and the relationship with native avian dispersers may increase their invasion potential. The impact of invasive plant species needs to be ...
  • Survey of non-native small mammals traded in South Africa 
    Shivambu, Ndivhuwo; Shivambu, T.C. (Tinyiko); Downs, Colleen T. (Wiley, 2022-09)
    The sale of live non-native animals has become a social norm and is of global concern. The pet trade industry has become one of the main pathways where non-native small mammals are introduced worldwide. We conducted a ...
  • African elephants can detect water from natural and artificial sources via olfactory cues 
    Wood, Matthew; Chamaillé-Jammes, Simon; Hammerbacher, Almuth; Shrader, A.M. (Adrian) (Springer, 2022-02)
    Water is vital for mammals. Yet, as ephemeral sources can be difficult to find, it raises the question, how do mammals locate water? Elephants (Loxodonta africana) are water-dependent herbivores that possess exceptional ...
  • Online and pet stores as sources of trade for reptiles in South Africa 
    Mantintsilili, Asekho; Shivambu, Ndivhuwo; Shivambu, T.C. (Tinyiko); Downs, Colleen T. (Elsevier, 2022-06)
    The ever-increasing human population, globalisation, and desire to keep pets have resulted in the translocation of many species into non-native environments. As a result, some of the non-native reptile species have been ...
  • Prey preferences of the chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes) 
    Bugir, Cassandra K.; Butynski, Thomas M.; Hayward, Matt W. (Wiley Open Access, 2021-06)
    The common chimpanzee Pan troglodytes is the closest extant relative of modern humans and is often used as a model organism to help understand prehistoric human behavior and ecology. Originally presumed herbivorous, ...
  • Modelling water temperature in the lower Olifants River and the implications for climate change 
    Adlam, Amanda L.; Chimimba, Christian Timothy; Retief, D.C. Hugo; Woodborne, Stephan M. (Academy of Science of South Africa, 2022-07)
    Freshwater systems in southern Africa are under threat of climate change, not only from altered flow regimes as rainfall patterns change, but also from biologically significant increases in water temperature. Statistical models ...
  • Socializing in an infectious world : the role of parasites in social evolution of a unique rodent family 
    Lutermann, Heike (Frontiers Media S.A., 2022-05-13)
    Transmission of parasites between hosts is facilitated by close contact of hosts. Consequently, parasites have been proposed as an important constraint to the evolution of sociality accounting for its rarity. Despite the ...
  • Seasonal changes in locomotor activity patterns of wild social Natal mole-rats (Cryptomys hottentotus natalensis) 
    Finn, Kyle T.; Janse van Vuuren, Andries Koch; Hart, Daniel William; Suess, Tobias; Zottl, Markus; Bennett, Nigel Charles (Frontiers Media S.A., 2022-02-11)
    Differences in individual locomotor activity patterns may be linked to a number of ecological factors, such as changes in ambient temperature or photoperiod. Observations on subterranean mammals suggest that they exhibit ...
  • Parasite-mediated mate preferences in a cooperatively breeding rodent 
    Lutermann, Heike; Butler, Kemba B.; Bennett, Nigel Charles (Frontiers Media S.A., 2022-03-03)
    Females of many species discriminate among males when choosing a mate and this can bear indirect and direct benefits including the avoidance of parasite transmission from infested males. In rodents, this may be mediated ...
  • Intergenerational inequity : stealing the joy and benefits of nature from our children 
    Hayward, Matt W.; Meyer, Ninon F. V.; Balkenhol, Niko; Beranek, Chad T.; Bugir, Cassandra K.; Bushell, Kathleen V.; Callen, Alex; Dickman, Amy J.; Griffin, Andrea S.; Haswell, Peter M.; Howell, Lachlan G.; Jordan, Christopher A.; Klop-Toker, Kaya; Moll, Remington J.; Montgomery, Robert A.; Mudumba, Tutilo; Osipova, Liudmila; Periquet, Stephanie; Reyna-Hurtado, Rafael; Ripple, William J.; Sales, Lilian P.; Weise, Florian Johannes; Witt, Ryan R.; Lindsey, Peter Andrew (Frontiers Media S.A., 2022-02-08)
    No abstract available.
  • Decline and fall : the causes of group failure in cooperatively breeding meerkats 
    Duncan, Chris; Manser, Marta B.; Clutton-Brock, Tim H. (Wiley Open Access, 2021-11)
    In many social vertebrates, variation in group persistence exerts an important effect on individual fitness and population demography. However, few studies have been able to investigate the failure of groups or the causes ...
  • Dominance style is a key predictor of vocal use and evolution across nonhuman primates 
    Kavanagh, Eithne; Street, Sally E.; Angwela, Felix O.; Bergman, Thore J.; Blaszczyk, Maryjka B.; Bolt, Laura M.; Briseño-Jaramillo, Margarita; Brown, Michelle; Chen-Kraus, Chloe; Clay, Zanna; Coye, Camille; Emery Thompson, Melissa; Estrada, Alejandro; Fichte, Claudia; Fruth, Barbara; Gamba, Marco; Giacoma, Cristina; Graham, Kirsty E.; Green, Samantha; Grueter, Cyril C.; Gupta, Shreejata; Gustison, Morgan L.; Hagberg, Lindsey; Hedwig, Daniela; Jack, Katharine M.; Kappeler, Peter M.; King-Bailey, Gillian; Kuběnová, Barbora; Lemasson, Alban; Inglis, David MacGregor; Machanda, Zarin; MacIntosh, Andrew; Majolo, Bonaventura; Marshall, Sophie; Mercier, Stephanie; Micheletta, Jérôme; Muller, Martin; Notman, Hugh; Ouattara, Karim; Ostner, Julia; Pavelka, Mary S. M.; Peckre, Louise R.; Petersdorf, Megan; Quintero, Fredy; Ramos-Fernández, Gabriel; Robbins, Martha M.; Salmi, Roberta; Schamberg, Isaac; Schoof, Valérie A. M.; Schülke, Oliver; Semple, Stuart; Silk, Joan B.; Sosa-Lopéz, J. Roberto; Torti, Valeria; Valente, Daria; Ventura, Raffaella; Van de Waal, Erica; Weyher, Anna H.; Wilke, Claudia; Wrangham, Richard; Young, Christopher; Zanoli, Anna; Zuberbühler, Klaus; Lameira, Adriano R.; Slocombe, Katie (The Royal Society, 2021-07)
    Animal communication has long been thought to be subject to pressures and constraints associated with social relationships. However, our understanding of how the nature and quality of social relationships relates to the ...
  • Non-lethal assessment of potentially toxic elements across mammalian trophic levels in African savannahs 
    Webster, Andrea B.; Callealta, Javier F.; Bennett, Nigel Charles; Ganswindt, Andre (Frontiers Media S.A., 2022-01-27)
    South Africa is one of the most diverse countries in the world but the increase in agricultural, industrial and technological development to meet the needs of the growing human population has led to increased amounts of ...
  • The naked truth : a comprehensive clarification and classification of current ‘myths’ in naked mole-rat biology 
    Buffenstein, Rochelle; Amoroso, Vincent; Andziak, Blazej; Avdieiev, Stanislav; Azpurua, Jorge; Barker, Alison J.; Bennett, Nigel Charles; Brieno-Enriquez, Miguel A.; Bronner, Gary N.; Coen, Clive; Delaney, Martha A.; Dengler-Crish, Christine M.; Edrey, Yael H.; Faulkes, Christopher G.; Frankel, Daniel; Friedlander, Gerard; Gibney, Patrick A.; Gorbunova, Vera; Hine, Christopher; Holmes, Melissa M.; Jarvis, Jennifer U.M.; Kawamura, Yoshimi; Kutsukake, Nobuyuki; Kenyon, Cynthia; Khaled, Walid T.; Kikusui, Takefumi; Kissil, Joseph; Lagestee, Samantha; Larson, John; Lauer, Amanda; Lavrenchenko, Leonid A.; Lee, Angela; Levitt, Jonathan B.; Lewin, Gary R.; Hardell, Kaitlyn N. Lewis; Lin, TzuHua D.; Mason, Matthew J.; McCloskey, Dan; McMahon, Mary; Miura, Kyoko; Mogi, Kazutaka; Narayan, Vikram; O’Connor, Timothy P.; Okanoya, Kazuo; O’Riain, M. Justin; Park, Thomas J.; Place, Ned J.; Podshivalova, Katie; Pamenter, Matthew E.; Pyott, Sonja J.; Reznick, Jane; Ruby, J. Graham; Salmon, Adam B.; Santos-Sacchi, Joseph; Sarko, Diana K.; Seluanov, Andrei; Shepard, Alyssa; Smith, Megan; Storey, Kenneth B.; Tian, Xiao; Vice, Emily N.; Viltard, Mélanie; Watarai, Akiyuki; Wywial, Ewa; Yamakawa, Masanori; Zemlemerova, Elena D.; Zions, Michael; St. John Smith, Ewan (Wiley, 2022-02)
    The naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber) has fascinated zoologists for at least half a century. It has also generated considerable biomedical interest not only because of its extraordinary longevity, but also because ...