This work was conducted in the
prairie vole, a small monogamous rodent that displays patterns of social behaviors resembling those of humans, including selective social bonds and males caring for the young.
Herein, we determined if vegetation near
prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) nests differed from that of randomly sampled areas in the same habitat and if vegetation at nest locations and in habitat containing nests predicted female survival, offspring production, and pup survival.
Why has there been no superhero movie called Vole Man; half-man, half
prairie vole, a man who has lost all motivation in life, ignores his wife and occasionally scampers away from trouble.
If a
prairie vole has been stressed, it is more likely to be groomed.
Scent marking and mate choice in the
prairie vole, Microtus ochrogaster.
The
prairie vole is capable of consoling behaviour that previously has only been known in humans and a few higher animals, such as chimpanzees.
Interestingly, some mammals that are expected to be present in the area were not found in the pellets, including harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis),
prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster), and brown rat (Rattus norvegicus), all of which have been reported in Saw-whet and/or Long-eared Owl pellets previously (Graber 1962, Swengel and Swengel 1992).
Slade and Iskjaer (1990), reporting mean losses for hispid cotton rats and
prairie voles, found that the larger cotton rat (adults 100-150 g) lost proportionally less mass than did the smaller
prairie vole (adults <50 g).
A total of 27 species of mammals are currently known from Goose Pond, the most common being the
prairie vole, Microtus ochrogaster.
A small, furry rodent called a
prairie vole also appears to "fall in love." Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, have shown that when a female and male
prairie vole meet, the two spend an entire 24-hour period getting to know each other (see Rodent Romance, top right).
One of these loyal heartthrobs is an unlikely critter--a small, furry rodent named the
prairie vole.
animals Species (common name) May-Jun Aug-Sep Chaetodipus hispidus (hispid 23 58 pocket mouse) Cynomys ludovicianus 171 33 (black-tailed prairie dog) Microtus ochrogaster 26 11 (
prairie vole) Microtus pennsylvanicus 10 1 (meadow vole) Mus musculus (house mouse) 1 2 Neotoma mexicana (Mexican 30 woodrat) Peromyscus maniculatus (deer 711 780 mouse) Reithrodontomys megalotis 8 21 (western harvest mouse) Spermophilus tridecemline 34 atus (thirteen-lined ground squirrel) Sylvilagus audubonii 11 (Audubon's cottontail) No.
prairie vole - typical vole of the extended prairie region of central United States and southern Canada