Table of Contents: Volume 10 (2) 2011 (published 21 May 2012)

New data on the bat fauna of Con Dao Islands Kruskop S.V. P. 37-46 The composition of the bat fauna of Con Dao Islands (Southern Vietnam) is discussed. The insular fauna apparently comprises only eight species, including one frugivorous pteropodid, one nectarivorous pteropodid, one Rhinolophus species, and three species of leaf-nosed bats, false vampire, and one Kerivoula. The Fawn leaf-nosed bat, Hipposideros galeritus, was recorded on Con Dao for the first time. Some of previously published records should be treated as mistakes. Data of the cox 1 mitochondrial gene sequences support that mainland and insular horseshoe bats are conspecifics. Thus the usage of the name Rhinolophus chaseni in connection to the mainland populations is justified. The same genetic data show that the insular Hipposideros cf. larvatus and mainland H. grandis are also probably conspecifics, despite morphological difference of these two forms. In general, it can be supposed that the insular bat populations were derived from their mainland conspecifics at the very beginning of the Holocene, a presumed time of the archipelago origin. Details    Download PDF

Specific functional forms of behavior in pine marten Martes martes, based on snow tracking data Vladimirova E.J. P. 47-58 The paper describes the main functional forms of pine marten’ Martes martes behavior which include leaving refuge, foraging, change of feeding area, patrolling their territory, locomotion to resting site, rest, and running for safety. Each type of behavior is manifested through a number of reactions which are organized hierarchically. The hierarchy of reactions in mammals is illustrated for the pine marten. The animal’s unit reactions, as well as elementary motor reactions they consist of, are listed. As long as the functional type of behavior is correctly identified for a particular animal that left some visible signs of activity in its habitat, its unitary reactions can be discerned in the process of snow-tracking. Human impact changes the structure of behavior in pine martens. The quantity of reactions related to foraging tends to reduce. Details    Download PDF

Nest box utility for arboreal small mammals Kato A., Oshida T., Nguyen S.T., Nguyen N.X., Luon H.V., Ha T.V., Truong B.Q., Endo H., Nguyen D.X. P. 59-64 To test nest box utility in a Southeast Asian tropical forest, we set 30 wooden nest boxes on trees in the Cuc Phuong National Park, Vietnam for a year. During the rainy season, we checked each nest box each month in the daytime. We expected that arboreal rodents might be more likely to use the nest boxes as shelter from the heavy rain. During dry season, we additionally checked each nest box every two months. We expected that nest boxes would be used as a shelter from the rain by small arboreal mammals, such as rats and flying squirrels in the rainy season more than in the dry season. During the rainy season, we found ants, bees, and birds mainly nested the nest boxes for reproduction: bees in April; ants from May to August; and birds from April to June. From the late rainy season to the dry season, arboreal small mammals mainly used nest boxes: rats from August to February and flying squirrel in December. Nest resource competition between birds and rodents may be minimal since they use cavities in different seasons. Also, unlike our expectation, it was preliminary suggested that arboreal small rodents would use more frequently nest box in the dry season than in the rainy season. Details    Download PDF

Development and activities of a local beaver Castor fiber albicus population in the vicinity of Dessau, Germany in 1998–2006 Nitsche K.-A. P. 65-69 The beaver territories and the beaver activities in the vicinity of Dessau, Germany were observed from 1998 to 2006. Due to the utilisation of the capacities of the natural environment (particularly the ever scarcer food resources) there were no significant increases in numbers found in the investigation area. The population has already exceeded its maximum growth limit. There is no reproduction in some family beaver sites for two or even three years. High-water periods, wild boar (Sus scrofa) activities and anthropogenic interferences (removal of shrubs, tearing down of beaver dams) have made negative impacts on the beaver population. The influence of an area-covering occurrence of American mink (Neovison vison) on beaver reproduction could not yet be verified. The migration of beavers into water bodies close to the city was observed after the flood in 2002. Proposals are made for protective measures that would make a positive impact on the beaver population. Details    Download PDF

Forage quality thresholds for Saiga antelope in a semi-desert rangeland Abaturov B.D., Subbotin A.E. P. 71-81 Levels of digestibility and protein content necessary for maintenance, weight gain and lactation were estimated for Saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica). Estimates were based on results of digestion-balance trials using confined animals, and feeding trials involving tractable animals at pasture. Threshold parameters were estimated by regression of metabolizable energy intake and body weight gain, food digestibility and metabolic energy intake, protein content in food and the amount of consumed digestible protein. To meet maintenance requirements, food digestibility must be > 59%, with protein content > 7.7%. To meet requirements for growth and lactation, minimum digestibility must be 61–68%, with protein content > 14%. When feeding on native semi-desert range, free-ranging Saiga antelope can meet these nutritional thresholds only through selective foraging. Therefore, when evaluating grazing capacity of Saiga habitat it is important to take into consideration that only a small portion of the total plant biomass is comprised of plants and plant parts of sufficient quality. Details    Download PDF

Vladimir Petrovich Litvinenko. Obituary Baigusheva V.S., Titov V.V., Foronova I.V. P. 83-84 Details    Download PDF