ACTA THERIOLOGICA SINICA ›› 2014, Vol. 34 ›› Issue (2): 122-128.

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Does paedomorphosis contribute to prairie vole monogamy?

Timothy Bushyhead,J. Thomas Curtis   

  1. (Department of Pharmacology and Physiology,Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences
  • Online:2014-05-13 Published:2014-08-18
  • Contact: J. Thomas Curtis tom.curtis@okstate.edu
  • Supported by:
    This research was supported in part by NIH grant HD48462

幼体生长发育特征可导致橙腹田鼠的单配体制吗?

Timothy Bushyhead,J. Thomas Curtis   

  1. Department of Pharmacology and Physiology,Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences
  • 通讯作者: J. Thomas Curtis tom.curtis@okstate.edu
  • 基金资助:
    This research was supported in part by NIH grant HD48462

Abstract: We examined skull morphology in prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster)and meadow voles (M. pennsylvanicus),two closely related species with fundamentally different mating systems,to test the hypothesis that paedomorphosis contributes to the evolution of monogamous mating systems. Using several skull measurements,we found that the overall length:width ratio of meadow vole skulls was greater than that of prairie voles suggesting that meadow vole have longer narrower skulls. We then examined which aspects of skull morphology differed between the species and found that the ratio difference was attributable primarily to longer snout length in meadow voles. Finally,we compared adult morphology in both species to that of pups and found the prairie vole,a monogamous species,displays a more juvenile-like skull morphology than does the meadow vole,a promiscuous species. These results suggest that monogamous vole species retain more juvenile-like morphology than do promiscuous species,and thus possibly retain juvenile-like behaviors that may contribute to a monogamous mating system.

Key words: Meadow voles (M. pennsylvanicus), Monogamy, Prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster), Paedomorphosis, Skull morphology

摘要: 橙腹田鼠(Microtus ochrogaster)和草原田鼠(M. pennsylvanicus)是两种亲缘关系很近,但有着完全不同交配体制的田鼠。本文试图通过他们头骨的形态学比较来验证幼体生长发育(paedomorphosis)可以印证单配制交配体制进化的假说。通过几种头骨的测量,我们发现草原田鼠头骨的长与宽比例大于橙腹田鼠,说明前者具有相对狭长的头骨。进一步的测量发现,这种不同是由于草原田鼠具有相对较长的鼻骨造成的。最后,我们对同种内成年和幼年的头骨进行了比较,发现单配制的橙腹田鼠相对于多配制的草原田鼠,其成年的头骨与幼年的头骨更相似。这些测量结果说明与多配制的田鼠相比,单配制的田鼠在形态及行为上保留更多的幼年状态,而这种行为很可能与其交配体制有关。

关键词: 橙腹田鼠, 草原田鼠, 幼体生长发育, 头骨形态, 单配制