Few studies have evaluated seed predation in fragmented landscapes, in which lower species diversity is expected to modifying ecological interactions. The rates of seed removal by mammals were investigated in a continuous forest and two fragmented patches of Premontane Tropical Moist Forest, in Monteverde, Costa Rica. The composition of mammalian seed-predators in each site was recorded during ...

The Chapada Diamantina (CD) is located in Bahia State, between 11-14 degrees S and 41-43 degrees W, being part of the Serra do Espinhaço. The occurrence of different habitats and transition areas permits an interesting mammal fauna composition, with species from different biomes living in sympatry. Species of Didelphimorphia and Rodentia are important members of mammal communities in almost all...

To address whether there are differences of variation among repeat motif types and among taxonomic groups, we present here an analysis of variation and correlation of dinucleotide microsatellite repeats in eukaryotic genomes. Ten taxonomic groups were compared, those being primates, mammalia (excluding primates and rodentia), rodentia, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles, insects, molluscs, pl...

Masticatory myosin is widely expressed among several vertebrate classes. Generally, the expression of masticatory myosin has been associated with high bite force for a carnivorous feeding style (including capturing/restraining live prey), breaking down tough plant material and defensive biting in different species. Masticatory myosin expression in the largest mammalian order, Rodentia, has not ...

Cenozoic sediments of the Taatsiin Gol and TaatsiinTsagaan Nuur area are rich in fossils that provide unique evidence of mammal evolution in Mongolia. The strata are intercalated with basalt flows. 40Ar/39Ar data of the basalts frame the time of sediment deposition and mammal evolution and enable a composite age chronology for the studied area. We investigated 20 geological sections and 6 fossi...

The discovery of an exceptionally well-preserved skull permits the description of the new South American fossil species of the rodent, Josephoartigasia monesi sp. nov. (family: Dinomyidae; Rodentia: Hystricognathi: Caviomorpha). This species with estimated body mass of nearly 1000kg is the largest yet recorded. The skull sheds new light on the anatomy of the extinct giant rodents of the Dinomyi...

Two filarioid nematodes, Litomosoides andersoni n. sp. and Litomosoides ctenomyos n. sp. (Nemata: Onchocercidae), are described from the mesenteries of the subterranean rodent Ctenomys opimus (Rodentia: Hystrichognathi) collected on the altiplano of Bolivia. Specimens collected near Rancho Huancaroma (Oruro Dept.) in 1984 and 1986 can be recognized as undescribed by the structures of the spicul...

There are 25 species of rats and mice (familly Muridae) in peninsular Malaysia (Medway 1978). Of these the karyotypes of 19 species have been described (Yong 1968, 1969 and 1973). The chromosomes of the other 6 species found in this country have, however, not been reported. Of these 6 species, the chromosomes of Hapalomys and Pithecheir have also not been reported from other countries. The pres...

We used an individual-based molecular multisource approach to assess the epidemiological importance of Triatoma brasiliensis collected in distinct sites and ecotopes in Rio Grande do Norte State, Brazil. In the semi-arid zones of Brazil, this blood sucking bug is the most important vector of Trypanosoma cruzi--the parasite that causes Chagas disease. First, cytochrome b (cytb) and microsatellit...

We recently reported that masticatory ('superfast') myosin is expressed in jaw-closing muscles of some rodent species. Most mammalian limb muscle fibers express tropomyosin-β (Tm-β), along with fast-type or slow-type tropomyosin-β (Tm-β), but jaw-closing muscle fibers in members of Carnivora express a unique isoform of Tm [Tm-masticatory (Tm-M)] and little or no Tm-β. The goal of this study was...