• A comprehensive profile of reproductive hormones in eusocial Damaraland mole-rats (Fukomys damarensis) 

  Wallace, Kyra Mary Elizabeth; Hart, D.W. (Daniel); Hagenah, Nicole; Ganswindt, Andre; Bennett, Nigel C. (Elsevier, 2023-03)

  In species where sociality and group cohesion are primarily determined by the maintenance of a reproductive division of labour and cooperative behaviours, the eusocial Damaraland mole-rat (Fukomys damarensis) presents a ...
• Functional traits—not nativeness—shape the effects of large mammalian herbivores on plant communities 

  Lundgren, Erick J.; Bergman, Juraj; Trepel, Jonas; Le Roux, Elizabeth; Monsarrat, Sophie; Kristensen, Jeppe Aagaard; Pedersen, Rasmus Østergaard; Pereyra, Patricio; Tietje, Melanie; Svenning, Jens-Christian (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 2024-02)

  Large mammalian herbivores (megafauna) have experienced extinctions and declines since prehistory. Introduced megafauna have partly counteracted these losses yet are thought to have unusually negative effects on plants ...
• Educators’ and visitors’ perceptions of invasive species education in zoos 

  Steele, Zachary T.; Pienaar, Elizabeth Frances (Routledge, 2023)

  Management of invasive alien species (IAS) depends on public awareness and cooperation, which may be increased by effective IAS education by zoos. We administered a questionnaire to visitors (n = 221) and educators (n = 44) ...
• Pangolin genomes offer key insights and resources for the world's most trafficked wild mammals 

  Heighton, Sean P.; Allio, Remi; Murienne, Jerome; Salmona, Jordi; Meng, Hao; Scornavacca, Celine; Bastos, Armanda; Njiokou, Flobert; Pietersen, Darren W.; Tilak, Marie-Ka; Luo, Shu-Jin; Delsuc, Frederic; Gaubert, Philippe (Oxford University Press, 2023-10)

  Pangolins form a group of scaly mammals that are trafficked at record numbers for their meat and purported medicinal properties. Despite their conservation concern, knowledge of their evolution is limited by a paucity of ...
• Ecology : humans are scarier than lions 

  Shrader, A.M. (Adrian) (Cell Press, 2023-11)

  In Africa, nothing inspires fear more than lions. They are large, hunt in groups and kill prey much larger than themselves. Yet, evidence suggests that African wildlife are more afraid of humans than anything else that ...
• Forest loss during 2000–2019 in pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis liberiensis) habitats was driven by shifting agriculture 

  Erazo-Mera, Estefania; Younes, Nicolas; Horwood, Paul F.; Paris, Damien B.B.P.; Paris, Monique C.J.; Murray, Nicholas (Cambridge University Press, 2024-03)

  Please read abstract in the article.
• Dispersal ability is associated with contrasting patterns of beta diversity in African small mammal communities 

  Monadjem, Ara; Healy, Kevin; Guillerme, Thomas; Kane, Adam (Wiley, 2023-03)

  Please read abstract in the article.
• The elusive echo : the mystery of Africa’s sparse bat fossil record 

  Pretorius, Mariette (Academy of Science of South Africa, 2024-03)

  SIGNIFICANCE : The scarcity of bat fossils in Africa poses a significant challenge to both scientific understanding and current conservation efforts. While this article engages in informed speculation regarding the reasons ...
• Identifying inconsistencies in exotic pet regulations that perpetuate trade in risky species 

  Pratt, Elizabeth N.; Lockwood, Julie L.; King, Elizabeth G.; Pienaar, Elizabeth Frances (Wiley, 2024-04)

  Regulatory inconsistencies at different jurisdictional levels have contributed to the global expansion of the exotic pet trade, with resultant increases in the spread of invasive species and pathogens. Researchers have ...
• Counter-strategies to infanticide : the importance of cubs in determining lion habitat selection and social interactions 

  Dejeante, Romain; Loveridge, Andrew J.; Macdonald, David W.; Madhlamoto, Daphine; Valeix, Marion; Chamaille-Jammes, Simon (Wiley, 2024-02)

  Animal social and spatial behaviours are inextricably linked. Animal movements are driven by environmental factors and social interactions. Habitat structure and changing patterns of animal space use can also shape social ...
• The relationship between mammalian burrow abundance and bankrupt bush (Seriphium plumosum) encroachment 

  Oosthuysen, Morne; Strauss, W. Maartin; Somers, Michael J. (South African National Biodiversity Institute, 2023-07-17)

  BACKGROUND : Much of the Grassland Biome in South Africa is prone to shrub encroachment, leading to loss of ecosystem services, habitat heterogeneity and species diversity. Burrowing mammals are an important component of ...
• Wild mice in an urbanized world: Effects of light at night under natural and laboratory conditions in the single-striped grass mouse (Lemniscomys rosalia) 

  Oosthuizen, Tasha; Pillay, Neville; Oosthuizen, Maria Kathleen (Taylor and Francis, 2024)

  Urbanization, and the accompanying artificial light at night (ALAN), can disrupt the activity of animals. Such disruptions at the base of a food web can ripple through the ecosystem. Most studies of ALAN are performed in ...
• Effects of phylogenetic associations on environmental and temporal niche partitioning among sympatric mammals 

  Dalerum, Fredrik; Cipollone, Mario; Cordischi, Fabrizio; Di Croce, Antonio; Ferri, Doriana; Giovannini, Silvia; La Civita, Filippo; Monaco, Antonio; Paglione, Gabriella; Paniccia, Chiara; Petriccione, Bruno; Romano, Mario; Shivij, Irene; Trei, Jan Niklas; Meloro, Carlo (Elsevier, 2024-02)

  Mammals have evolved to occupy spatial and temporal niches in order to optimize resource utilization and minimize predation risk or competition. Subsequently, niche partitioning may be influenced by phylogenetic associations, ...
• Frightened of giants : fear responses to elephants approach that of predators 

  Fletcher Jr, Robert J.; O’Brien, Amanda; Hall, Timothy F.; Jones, Maggie; Potash, Alex D.; Kruger, Laurence; Simelane, Phumlile; Roques, Kim; Monadjem, Ara; McCleery, Robert A. (Royal Society, 2023-10)

  Animals are faced with a variety of dangers or threats, which are increasing in frequency with ongoing environmental change. While our understanding of fearfulness of such dangers is growing in the context of predation ...
• Hopping from the heat : the locomotory activity patterns of the Lesser Egyptian Jerboa (Jaculus jaculus) 

  Bennett, Nigel Charles; Hart, D.W. (Daniel); Munro, S.; Amor, N.; Mohammed, O.B.; Alagaili, A.N. (Elsevier, 2024-02)

  Arid-dwelling mammals are exposed to extreme daily temperatures, which puts these mammals at risk of overheating and dehydration, particularly while active, these risks are increased as the body size is reduced. Consequently, ...
• Generalist dietary responses to individual versus combined plant toxin odors: an African elephant study 

  Bester, Twane; Schmitt, Melissa H.; Shrader, A.M. (Adrian) (Oxford University Press, 2023-09)

  The detoxification limitation hypothesis posits that, unless plant defense compounds interact synergistically or additively to increase their harmful effects, generalist herbivores will prefer consuming combinations of ...
• Anthropogenic supply of nutrients in a wildlife reserve may compromise conservation success 

  Abraham, Andrew J.; Duvall, Ethan S.; Le Roux, Elizabeth; Ganswindt, Andre; Clauss, Marcus; Doughty, Christopher E.; Webster, Andrea B. (Elsevier, 2023-08)

  In nutrient-poor wildlife reserves it has become common-practice to provide supplemental mineral resources for wildlife. Yet, the impacts of anthropogenic mineral supplementation on large herbivore nutrition, behaviour, ...
• Abundance and trait-matching both shape interaction frequencies between plants and birds in seed-dispersal networks 

  Pena, Rocio; Schleuning, Matthias; Dalerum, Fredrik; Donoso, Isabel; Rodriguez-Perez, Javier; Garcia, Daniel (Elsevier, 2023-02)

  Abundance and trait-driven processes have both been identified as potential mechanisms in determining the occurrence of species interactions. However, little is known about how these two mechanisms interact to determine ...
• Recommendations for the development of a carnivore viewing site at a colony of Cape fur seals (Arctocephalus pusillus pusillus) in southern Namibia 

  Lemerle, Marie Anna; Wiesel, Ingrid; Somers, Michael J. (Routledge, 2024)

  This study examined the daily and monthly activity patterns of brown hyenas (Hyaena brunnea) and black-backed jackals (Canis mesomelas) at a Cape fur seal colony in southern Namibia, to provide recommendations for developing ...
• Why humans kill animals and why we cannot avoid it 

  Allen, Benjamin L.; Bobier, Christopher; Dawson, Stuart; Fleming, Peter J.S.; Hampton, Jordan; Jachowski, David; Kerley, Graham I.H.; Linnell, John D.C.; Marnewick, Kelly; Minnie, Liaan; Muthersbaugh, Mike; O'Riain, M. Justin; Parker, Dan; Proulx, Gilbert; Somers, Michael J.; Titus, Keifer (Elsevier, 2023-10)

  Killing animals has been a ubiquitous human behaviour throughout history, yet it is becoming increasingly controversial and criticised in some parts of contemporary human society. Here we review 10 primary reasons why ...

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