The Biology of Small Mammals

by Merritt, Joseph F.

• ISBN13: 9780801879500
• ISBN10: 0801879507
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2010-02-04
• Publisher: Johns Hopkins Univ Pr

Summary

The Biology of Small Mammals is the first exploration of the lives of small mammals undertaken in decades. Mammalogist Joseph F. Merritt offers an engaging, in-depth discussion about a diverse array of small mammals, from the rare Kitti s hog-nosed bat of Southeast Asia to the bizarre aye-aye of Madagascar to the familiar woodchuck of North America. Small mammals include those mammals weighing under five kilograms (approximately eleven pounds). Merritt introduces the various species that fall under this heading, then follows with chapters that cover such topics as behavior, modes of feeding, locomotion, habitat-use, reproduction, and how small mammals cope with heat loss. Animals of this size face different physiological and ecological challenges than larger mammals. Merritt describes in rich detail how mammals across the globe have adapted to compensate for their small stature, showing how they contribute to and survive in diverse environments in many fascinating ways. For example, arctic foxes, weighing just between 3 and 4.3 kilograms, are champion survivors in the cold. They cope with their harsh environs by decreasing activity, seeking shelter in temporary dens and snow burrows, growing a lush winter fur, and undergoing complex physiological changes to insulate themselves from chilling temperatures. Beautifully illustrated throughout, The Biology of Small Mammals provides a valuable and updated reference on nature s more diminutive creatures.

Author Biography

Joseph F. Merritt is a senior mammalogist with the Illinois Natural History Survey, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, holding courtesy academic appointments at the University of Colorado, Indiana State University, and SUNY's College of Environmental Science and Forestry. He is the coauthor of Mammalogy: Adaptation, Diversity, Ecology, also published by Johns Hopkins.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xv
Introduction	p. 1
What Is a Small Mammal?	p. 1
Advantages and Disadvantages of Being a Small Mammal	p. 2
The Protagonists	p. 4
Monotremes and Marsupials	p. 4
Afrosoricida, Erinaceomorpha, Soricomorpha, Macroscelidea, Scandentia, and Dermoptera	p. 6
Chiroptera	p. 7
Primates	p. 8
Carnivora	p. 10
Rodentia	p. 11
Lagomorpha	p. 15
Hyracoidea	p. 16
Modes of Feeding	p. 19
Insectivory	p. 21
General Characteristics	p. 21
Dilambdodont Dentition	p. 21
Terrestrial Insectivores	p. 24
Venomous Saliva	p. 25
Long, Protrusile Tongue	p. 28
Arboreal Insectivores	p. 32
Elongated Digits	p. 32
Semiaquatic and Fossorial Insectivores	p. 34
Sensory Mucous Glands	p. 34
Elmer's Organs	p. 36
Underwater Sniffing	p. 40
Subterranean Insectivores	p. 42
Seismic Sensitivity	p. 46
Aerial Insectivores	p. 48
Wings	p. 50
Echolocation	p. 52
Herbivory	p. 60
General Characteristics	p. 61
Ever-Growing Incisors	p. 61
Coprophagy	p. 63
Granivores	p. 65
Food Hoarding	p. 67
Cheek Pouches	p. 71
Frugivores	p. 76
Piercing Teeth	p. 77
Prehensile Tail and Protrusile Tongue	p. 80
Nectarivores	p. 82
Brush-Tipped Tongue	p. 82
Gummivores	p. 89
Folivores	p. 95
Foregut versus Hindgut Fermentation	p. 95
Gliding Membranes and Pectinate Teeth	p. 98
Case Study
Rock Badgers: Gutsy Cliff-Dwellers	p. 101
Carnivory	p. 105
General Characteristics	p. 105
Carnassial Teeth	p. 105
Flesh-Eating Carnivores	p. 106
Felids	p. 106
Mustelids	p. 110
Canids	p. 114
Piscivores	p. 117
Claws, Cheek Pouches, and a Sixth Finger	p. 117
Sanguinivores	p. 122
Knifelike Teeth and Heat-Sensitive Nasal Pits	p. 122
Omnivory	p. 126
Omnivorous Carnivores	p. 127
Procyonids	p. 127
Herpestids	p. 127
Viverrids	p. 128
Euplerids	p. 129
Mycophagy	p. 129
Case Studies
The Hero Shrew: Mysterious Insectivore	p. 131
Dietary Nonconformists	p. 134
Gleaning, Hawking, Hovering, and Perch-Hunting	p. 142
Environmental Adaptations	p. 147
Endothermy	p. 149
Heterothermy	p. 156
Torpor	p. 156
Hibernation	p. 160
Coping with Cold	p. 172
Insulatory Changes	p. 172
Countercurrent Heat Exchange: The Miraculous Net	p. 174
Reduced Level of Activity	p. 175
Reduction of Body Mass (Dehnel's Phenomenon)	p. 179
Fat Tails	p. 180
Social Thermoregulation	p. 183
Increased Heat Production	p. 189
Coping with Heat and Aridity	p. 192
Conserving Water	p. 193
Dietary Water Intake	p. 195
Evaporative Cooling	p. 197
Sweating, Panting, and Saliva Spreading	p. 198
Respiratory Heat Exchange	p. 200
Pelage Insulation	p. 203
Behavioral Avoidance of Heat	p. 204
Ecogeographic Rules	p. 208
Modified Size of Appendages (Allen's Rule)	p. 208
Seasonal Color Dimorphism (Gloger's Rule)	p. 210
Body Mass and Latitude (Bergmann's Rule)	p. 214
Case Studies
Communal Nesting	p. 216
Hedgehogs: Spiny Hibernators	p. 218
Reproduction	p. 221
Reproductive Variations	p. 223
Delayed Fertilization	p. 223
Delayed Implantation	p. 225
Delayed Development	p. 228
Embryonic Diapause	p. 228
Mating Systems and Reproductive Strategies	p. 231
High Fecundity	p. 231
Monogamy, Housekeeping, and Mate Guarding	p. 234
Absentee Maternal Care	p. 237
Lek Behavior	p. 240
Eusociality	p. 242
Semelparity: Breeding and Sudden Death	p. 246
Population Cycles: Lemmings and Snowshoe Hares	p. 249
Appendix: Useful Web Sites	p. 255
Glossary	p. 257
References	p. 267
Index	p. 297
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