Activity patterns, movements and burrows of platypuses (Ornithorhynchus anatinus) in a sub-alpine Tasmanian lake

2000 ◽  
Vol 48 (6) ◽  
pp. 701 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen M. Otley ◽  
Sarah A. Munks ◽  
Mark A. Hindell

Adult male and female platypuses were radio-tracked in summer and winter at Lake Lea, north-western Tasmania. They appeared to exhibit greater diurnality, particularly during winter months, a greater degree of overland movement and more frequent use of non-earth refuge sites than do animals inhabiting mainland water bodies. Individuals foraged continuously for up to 16 h, with longer foraging bouts observed during the winter tracking period. Foraging range varied between 2 and 58 ha, with no significant differences observed between the sexes or seasons. All platypuses foraged predominantly in the lake; however, a number of animals were observed moving overland to and from waterbodies and burrows. Burrows were located on lake, creek and pool edges. A high percentage of burrows (25%) were located within dense sedge tussocks and scrub vegetation. Both the terrestrial activity and more opportunistic burrow-site selection may be related to reduced predation pressure in Tasmania.

2003 ◽  
Vol 117 (3) ◽  
pp. 424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick R. Lemons ◽  
Warren B. Ballard ◽  
Robert M. Sullivan ◽  
Marsha A. Sovada

Activity of Swift Foxes (Vulpes velox) at den sites was studied in northwestern Texas during pup rearing seasons in 2000 and 2001 to determine role of males in parental care. Twenty-four percent of radio-collared females with a potential to breed successfully raised pups to eight weeks of age. We intensively monitored presence and absence of male and female Swift Foxes at two den sites each year. Females were present >2.6 times more at den sites than males during the pup rearing season. Female and male Swift Foxes largely stayed at dens during diurnal hours and were active away from dens during nocturnal and crepuscular hours. Females and males spent 12.4% and 3.0% more time at dens before pups emerged, than after pups emerged, respectively. Following depredation of one male parent, the female spent 29% less time at the den site. Decrease in time spent at the den by the female following loss of her mate suggested that loss of one parent might severely impact recruitment of Swift Foxes. Our observations indicated that intense Coyote (Canis latrans) depredation may severely impact pup-rearing success as well as the parental care within Swift Fox family groups.


1998 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 195
Author(s):  
M.R. Hawkins

Detailed video monitoring studies of the activity patterns of platypuses, Ornithorhynchus anatinus, given free access to a variable captive system were conducted. When alone, platypuses in captivity linked their activity to the nocturnal light cycle and followed a predictable pattern of activity. This was mostly confined to the dark photo-period and with long periods of continuous presence in the water. When individuals were paired a 'dominance' relationship usually developed. The adult male was dominant over the females in all combinations. In the pairing of a sub-adult male and female, the female remained dominant and between two females there was little indication of dominance. The dominant animal's pattern of activity in the water remained similar to that when kept alone, except for a slight lengthening of its active period and spread of activity. The second animal's active period shortened and became more fragmented. The spread of its activity increased and the activity moved more into the high light periods when the dominant animal was not present. All the activity criteria examined could reflect different strategies for the separation of the activity- cycles changes to the length of the active period, leaving the tank when the other animal was present, increasing the spread of activity, extending activity into the 'daylight' period. It was concluded that one reason behind the changes of activity pattern in paired platypuses was the desire for an un-interrupted feeding time.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. s-0032-1319931-s-0032-1319931
Author(s):  
S. Al Rowas ◽  
R. Gawri ◽  
R. Haddad ◽  
A. Almaawi ◽  
L. E. Chalifour ◽  
...  

Diabetes ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (Supplement 1) ◽  
pp. 1999-P ◽  
Author(s):  
HYE LIM NOH ◽  
SUJIN SUK ◽  
RANDALL H. FRIEDLINE ◽  
KUNIKAZU INASHIMA ◽  
DUY A. TRAN ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 165 ◽  
pp. 105461
Author(s):  
Nataliia Hula ◽  
Floor Spaans ◽  
Jennie Vu ◽  
Anita Quon ◽  
Raven Kirschenman ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 174480692110113
Author(s):  
Paul G Green ◽  
Pedro Alvarez ◽  
Jon D Levine

Fibromyalgia and other chronic musculoskeletal pain syndromes are associated with stressful early life events, which can produce a persistent dysregulation in the hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal (HPA) stress axis function, associated with elevated plasm levels of corticosterone in adults. To determine the contribution of the HPA axis to persistent muscle hyperalgesia in adult rats that had experienced neonatal limited bedding (NLB), a form of early-life stress, we evaluated the role of glucocorticoid receptors on muscle nociceptors in adult NLB rats. In adult male and female NLB rats, mechanical nociceptive threshold in skeletal muscle was significantly lower than in adult control (neonatal standard bedding) rats. Furthermore, adult males and females that received exogenous corticosterone (via dams’ milk) during postnatal days 2–9, displayed a similar lowered mechanical nociceptive threshold. To test the hypothesis that persistent glucocorticoid receptor signaling in the adult contributes to muscle hyperalgesia in NLB rats, nociceptor expression of glucocorticoid receptor (GR) was attenuated by spinal intrathecal administration of an oligodeoxynucleotide (ODN) antisense to GR mRNA. In adult NLB rats, GR antisense markedly attenuated muscle hyperalgesia in males, but not in females. These findings indicate that increased corticosterone levels during a critical developmental period (postnatal days 2–9) produced by NLB stress induces chronic mechanical hyperalgesia in male and female rats that persists in adulthood, and that this chronic muscle hyperalgesia is mediated, at least in part, by persistent stimulation of glucocorticoid receptors on sensory neurons, in the adult male, but not female rat.


2008 ◽  
Vol 180 ◽  
pp. S39-S40
Author(s):  
Robert Roos ◽  
Patrik Andersson ◽  
Päivi Heikkinen ◽  
Hans-Joachim Schmitz ◽  
Leo van der Ven ◽  
...  

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