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Title
Effect of Group Size on Body Weight in Different Thermal Environments for Microtus pinetorum
Document Type
Article
Date of this Version
March 1983
Seasonal variation in growth rates has been well documented in some small rodents (Kubik, 1965; Brown, 1973; Iverson and Turner, 1974; Peterborg, 1978; Pistole and Cranford, 1983). During winter juveniles tend to show little or no growth; however, Kubik (1965) found that Cleithronomys glareolus born in late fall went through a two-phase growth pattern. Growing rapidly until winter and then resuming rapid growth the following spring. Additionally, Brown (1973) has reported the same two-phase growth in Microtus pennsylvanicus. Iverson and Turner (1974) demonstrated that Microtus pennsylvanicus adults showed a loss of weight during winter, and Pistole and Cranford (1983) have shown that M. pennsylvanicus subadults continued growth under natural winter conditions but at a significantly slower rate than occurs under summer conditions. Additionally, adults lost weight until winter solstice and then gained weight with increasing photoperiod. This data implies a complex relationship between growth, photoperiod, and ambient temperature.
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Published in Proceedings of the Seventh Eastern Pine and Meadow Vole Symposium, Harpers Ferry, WV, March 3-4, 1983, Ross E. Byers, editor. Copyright © 1983 Cranford and Thumser.