Iberian mole

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Iberian mole
Iberian mole (Talpa occidentalis)

Iberian mole ( Talpa occidentalis )

Systematics
Order : Insect eater (Eulipotyphla)
Family : Moles (Talpidae)
Subfamily : Old World Moles (Talpinae)
Tribe : Actual moles (Talpini)
Genre : Eurasian moles ( Talpa )
Type : Iberian mole
Scientific name
Talpa occidentalis
Cabrera , 1907

The Iberian mole ( Talpa occidentalis ) is a mammal of the family of moles (Talpidae) within the order of insectivores (Eulipotyphla). It occurs in large parts of the Iberian Peninsula and inhabits regions there with moist and thick soil formations. The animals are smaller than the closely related European mole , but look a lot like it. Differences can be found in the shorter snout, the wider forefeet and the relatively larger teeth. Like other representatives of the Eurasian molesThe Iberian mole also lives underground and digs tunnels and passages with characteristic hills as entrances and exits. The main diet consists of invertebrates . The offspring, usually two to three young per litter, are raised in a nest and the reproductive phase is generally limited to the wetter seasons. A special feature is the hermaphroditism of the females, who can sometimes switch sex. The scientific naming of the Iberian mole took place in 1907, initially as a subspecies of the blind mole . However, it was later recognized as a separate species. The stock is not considered endangered.

features

Habitus

The Iberian mole looks similar to the European mole ( Talpa europaea ), but is smaller than it. Its head-trunk length is 9.6 to 13.0 cm, the tail is 1.9 to 3.5 cm long. The body weight varies between 34 and 66 g. At an average of 65 g, males are a good 21.5% heavier than females, which weigh around 53.5 g. Like the other Eurasian moles, the Iberian mole has a cylindrically shaped and robust body, with the head sitting on a short neck. In addition, the front feet are designed like shovels and turned outwards. In general, the front feet are a little wider than the European mole, but the muzzle is shorter. The fur has a characteristic black color, but occasionally a white belly spot appears. The eyes are hidden under the skin. The hind feet reach lengths of 1.4 to 1.8 cm.

Skull and dentition features

The skull of the Iberian mole is rather small, but robustly built and is characterized by a wide rostrum . In around a dozen individuals, its length ranges from 30.4 to 33.0 mm, the width in the area of ​​the orbit from 6.2 to 6.7 mm. The infraorbital foramen is rather small compared to the European mole. In comparison to the blind mole of the same size ( Talpa caeca ), it is further forward, above the central molar. The teeth 44 is composed of teeth with the following tooth formula : . Under certain circumstances, however, individual premolars may be missing. Compared to the European mole, the molars are more robustly built, which is mainly reflected in the size of the upper third molar. Individual differences can be found in the details of the teeth. The trigonid of the first lower molar in the Iberian mole is less well developed, while the upper molars show a less pronounced tongue-side hypoconus. On the upper first molar, the mesostyle, a small cusp between the two main cusps on the lip side (Paraconus and Metaconus), is equipped with two tips, whereas this has only one point in the European mole and the Aquitaine mole ( Talpa aquitania ). The length of the upper row of teeth varies between 11.5 and 12.7 mm.

Genetic traits

The diploid chromosome set is 2n = 34. The X chromosome is metacentric, the Y chromosome is the smallest of the entire karyotype and is also metacentric. The complete mitogenome of the Iberian mole comprises 16,962 base pairs and is therefore somewhat larger than that of the European mole. Otherwise, both species have very similar genomes in terms of arrangement and orientation. The same can be said of the Aquitaine mole ( Talpa aquitania ).

distribution and habitat

Distribution area of ​​the Iberian mole

The distribution area of ​​the Iberian Mole covers a large part of the Iberian Peninsula with the exception of the eastern part, the Pyrenees and the Ebro Valley. The deposit also extends to the Galician island of Cortegada. The animals inhabit a wide variety of habitats, but each of them is associated with thick and moist soils. This includes meadows, pastures, orchards and poplar plantations. The species is more common in higher mountain areas than in drier lowlands. The altitude distribution extends from sea level to around 2300 m. Investigations in the province of Granada in the dry south-east of Spain revealed an increasing population density in areas with intensive irrigation of the soil, which is positively linked to an increase in earthworms as an important food source for the Iberian mole. He prefers areas with a traditional irrigation system consisting of a network of small canals and gullies, but avoids areas with modern, almost extensive irrigation. In Cantabria there is a marginal overlap with the occurrence of the Aquitaine mole .

Way of life

Territorial behavior

In principle, the way of life of the Iberian mole is similar to that of the European mole , but it has been much better researched in the latter. The animals mostly live underground and dig burrows and tunnels in loose soil. Their exits lead to characteristic ejection mounds ( molehills ). According to investigations on an orchard in Asturias in northwestern Spain, up to 18 such heaps of earth occur on an area of ​​around 20 m². The diameter of the mound is 8 to 24.8 cm. The openings are between 2 and 5 cm wide, which roughly corresponds to the size of the tunnel. In the region, the Iberian mole shares its tunnels with the Iberian small vole . No information is available on other behaviors such as daily migration or the use of space.

nutrition

Like the European mole, the Iberian mole feeds mainly on earthworms , including the genera Dendrobaena and Allolobophora . There are also various molluscs , millipedes , centipedes , crickets , butterflies and beetles . The latter include larvae of cockchafer and shrimp .

Reproduction

The breeding of the Iberian mole is seasonally limited. It mainly takes place between September and May, while it is dormant in the dry summer months. Pregnant females were mainly observed between October and May, lactating dams between November and May. During the sexually active phase, the ovaries and uterus in females and the testes in males swell markedly. The weight of the uterus increases from 100 to up to 550 mg, that of the testes from around 50 to over 310 mg. The gestation period lasts about 28 days, and a mother carries two to three embryos . Young animals weigh 3 to 5 g and are 29 to 45 mm long. They have reddish brown skin and are naked. Their movements are similar to those of adult animals. Compared to the offspring of the European mole, the young of the Iberian mole are smaller and less developed. The short and dark gray to black fur of the adult animals develops after 12 to 17 days. It is noticeable that the rapid increase in size of the young ceases in this phase, which suggests that fur formation requires a large part of the energy. In the first four weeks of life, the young feed exclusively on mother's milk . After 27 to 33 days, they leave the maternal nest and start eating solid food. In the same period of time, weaning begins. The boys then weigh between 38 and 57 g. The offspring reach sexual maturity around October or November. He leaves the territory of the mother animal and creates his own burrows.

The long reproduction period enables the females to carry offspring several times a year. The total weight of a litter after weaning exceeds the weight of the mother by 2.8 times. Studies show that individuals with XY chromosomes correspond to males both externally and internally. Those with XX chromosomes are phenotypically females, but in their internal structure they are hermaphrodites , as they have hermaphroditic glands . Your ability to reproduce is unrestricted. Sometimes there is also a gender swap, whereby these individuals turn out to be sterile with on average smaller testes than in XY males. In a study of 54 individuals from a natural population near Vega de Granada in Spain, 33 were clearly found to be male, 11 to be female, 8 to be hermaphrodites and 2 to be originally female with a gender swap. Another study considered 218 individuals with 131 distinct males and 87 females, almost all of which, apart from the young, were hermaphrodites. Some of them carried offspring, others produced milk.

Predators and parasites

The eagle owl is an important predator , but according to studies in Portugal, the share of the Iberian mole in the total food of the raptor is rather small. Occasionally, remains of the Iberian mole are in Gewöllen the marsh harrier found. To the internal parasites include various worms , are to be emphasized flukes of the genus Ityogonimus and Omphalometra , acanthocephala the genus moniliformis and nematodes of the genera Liniscus , Soboliphyme and Spirura . The latter genus is much rarer in the Iberian mole than in the European mole.

Systematics

Internal systematics of the Eurasian moles according to Demırtaş et al. 2020
 Talpa  


 Talpa altaica


   

 Talpa ognevi


   

 Talpa caucasica




   


 Talpa talyschensis


   

 Talpa davidiana



   

 Talpa caeca


   

 Talpa stankovici


   

 Talpa transcaucasica


   

 Talpa levantis



   

 Talpa romana


   

 Talpa martinorum


   


 Talpa occidentalis


   

 Talpa aquitania



   

 Talpa europaea





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The Iberian mole is a species from the genus of the Eurasian mole ( Talpa ), to which around a dozen more belong and whose most famous representative is the European mole ( Talpa europaea ). The Eurasian moles are part of the tribe of the actual moles (Talpini) and the family of moles (Talpidae). The actual moles summarize the mostly digging relatives of the moles. Other members of the family, on the other hand, only live partially underground, move above ground or have a semi-aquatic way of life.

The first scientific description of the Iberian mole comes from Ángel Cabrera in 1907. Cabrera introduced it under the name Talpa caeca occidentalis as a subspecies of the blind mole ( Talpa caeca ). The holotype represents a fully grown male animal with a body length of around 10 cm. The type region was given by Cabrera with La Granja near Segovia in central Spain . In his opinion, the habitat thus included the Sierra de Guadarrama . Cabrera distinguished the Iberian mole from the blind mole mainly by its smaller body size, broad forefeet and individual features on the skull. In 1912 Gerrit S. Miller raised the Iberian mole to the species level, which Cabrera took over two years later for the mammal band of Fauna Iberica .

In the course of the 20th century, the Iberian mole was partially back as a subspecies of the blind mole. In 1984, cytogenetic investigations then revealed significant differences in the karyotype , as the Iberian mole, corresponding to numerous other representatives of the Eurasian mole, has a chromosome set of 2n = 34, whereas the blind mole has 2n = 36. The first genetic analyzes only a few years later also spoke of one clear separation of the two forms. Another anatomical difference between the Iberian and the blind mole is the shape of the sacrum . The latter has a caecoidal structure (the opening of the foramen on the fourth sacral vertebra is directed backwards), while the former is europaeoidal (the opening of the foramen on the fourth sacral vertebra is covered by a bone bridge). More recent molecular genetic studies also see the Iberian mole in a closer connection to the European mole than to the blind mole. The separation of the Iberian and the European mole occurred in the transition from the Pliocene to the Lower Pleistocene around 2.8 million years ago, their genetic distance is over 8%. The Aquitaine mole , which split off from the line of the Iberian mole only 2.4 million years ago , is even more closely related . The genetic distance between the two species of mole is about 7.5%.

The Iberian mole is considered monotypical , so no subspecies are known. Genetically, however, three subpopulations could be distinguished, which are distributed over the north, west and south of the Iberian Peninsula. There are also no known fossils of the Iberian mole. A partially favored derivation of Talpa minor , an extinct small mole species that is documented from the Pliocene to the Central Pleistocene in Central and Eastern Europe , is ruled out according to studies from 2001 due to deviating tooth characteristics, for example the relative size of the molars.

Threat and protection

In general, the Iberian mole is considered to be relatively common; major threats to the population are not known. The loss of meadow areas in the course of afforestation programs can have a negative impact locally. It is also seen as a pest by farmers. The IUCN lists the species as "not threatened" ( least concern ). It occurs in various nature reserves.

literature

  • Boris Kryštufek and Masaharu Motokawa: Talpidae (Moles, Desmans, Star-nosed Moles and Shrew Moles). In: Don E. Wilson and Russell A. Mittermeier (eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 8: Insectivores, Sloths, Colugos. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2018, pp. 552-620 (pp. 612-613) ISBN 978-84-16728-08-4

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h Boris Kryštufek and Masaharu Motokawa: Talpidae (Moles, Desmans, Star-nosed Moles and Shrew Moles). In: Don E. Wilson and Russell A. Mittermeier (eds.): Handbook of the Mammals of the World. Volume 8: Insectivores, Sloths, Colugos. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona 2018, pp. 552-620 (pp. 612-613) ISBN 978-84-16728-08-4
  2. ^ A b Gerrit S. Miller: Catalog of the mammals of Western Europe (Europe exclusive of Russia) in the collection of the British Museum. London, 1912, pp. 1–1019 (pp. 15–17) ( [1] )
  3. ↑ a b c R. Jiménez, M. Burgos and R. Diaz De La Guardia: Karyotype and Chromosome Banding in the Mole (Talpa Occidentalis) from the South-East of the Iberian Peninsula. Implications on its Taxonomic Position. Caryologia 37, 1984, pp. 3, 253-258, doi: 10.1080 / 00087114.1984.10797705
  4. ^ A b c J. T. van Cleef-Roders and LW van den Hoek Ostend: Dental morphology of Talpa europaea and Talpa occidentalis (Mammalia: Insectivora) with a discussion of fossil Talpa in the Pleistocene of Europe. Zoologische Mededelingen Leiden 75, 2001, pp. 52-67
  5. ↑ a b c Violaine Nicolas, Jessica Martínez-Vargas and Jean-Pierre Hugot: Molecular data and ecological niche modeling reveal the evolutionary history of the common and Iberian moles (Talpidae) in Europe. Zoologica Scripta 46, 2017, pp. 12-26
  6. ↑ Juana Gutiérrez, Luz Lamelas, Gaël Aleix-Mata, María Arroyo, Juan Alberto Marchal, Teresa Palomeque, Pedro Lorite and Antonio Sánchez: Complete mitochondrial genome of the Iberian Mole Talpa occidentalis (Talpidae, Insectivora) and comparison with Talpa europaea. Genetica 146, 2018, pp. 415-423, doi: 10.1007 / s10709-018-0033-z
  7. ↑ Gaël Aleix ‑ Mata, Juana Gutiérrez, Francisco J. Ruiz ‑ Ruano, Pedro Lorite, Juan A. Marchal and Antonio Sánchez: The complete mitochondrial genome of Talpa aquitania (Talpidae; Insectivora), a mole species endemic to northern Spain and southern France . Molecular Biology Reports, 2020, doi: 10.1007 / s11033-020-05296-8
  8. ↑ Lola García-López de Hierroa, Marcos Moleón, Darío G. Lupiáñez, Emilio Virgós and Rafael Jiménez: Positive and negative unintended human-induced effects on Iberian mole abundance at the edge of its distribution area. Mammalian Biology 78, 2013, pp. 276-282
  9. ↑ Marcos Miñarro, C. Montiel and E. Dapena: Vole pests in apple orchards: use of presence signs to estimate the abundance of Arvicola terrestris cantabriae and Microtus lusitanicus. Journal of Pest Science 85, 2012, pp. 477-488
  10. ^ A b Rafael Jiménez, Miguel Burgos. Antonio Sanchez and Rafael Diaz de la Guardia: The reproductive cycle of Talpa occidentalis in the southeastern Iberian Peninsula. Acta Theriologica 35 (1-2), 1990, pp. 165-169
  11. ^ A b Francisco J. Barrionuevo, Federico Zurita, Miguel Burgos and Rafael Jiménez: Developmental stages and growth rate of the mole Talpa occidentalis (Insectivora, Mammalia). Journal of Mammalogy 85 (1), 2004, pp. 120-125
  12. ↑ Rafael Jiménez, Miguel Burgos, L. Caballero and Rafael Díaz de la Guardia: Sex reversal in a wild population of Talpa occidentalis (Insectivora, Mammalia). Genetic Research 52, 1988, pp. 135-140
  13. ↑ Rafael Jiménez, Miguel Burgos, Antonio Sánchez, Andrew H. Sinclair, Francisco J. Alarcón, Juan J. Marín, Esperanza Ortega and Rafael Díaz de la Guardia: Fertile females of the mole Talpa occidentalis are phenotypic intersexes with ovotestes. Development 118, 1993, pp. 1303-1311
  14. ^ Rui Lourenço: The food habits of Eurasian Eagle owls in southern Portugal. Journal of Raptor Research 40 (4), 2006, pp. 297-300
  15. ↑ M. Matos, M. Alves, MJ Ramos Pereira, I. Torres, S. Marques and C. Fonseca: Clear as daylight: analysis of diurnal raptor pellets for small mammal studies. Animal Biodiversity and Conservation 38 (1), 2015, pp. 37-48
  16. ↑ Alexis Ribas and Joan C. Casanova: Helminths of Talpa europaea (Insectivora, Talpidae) in southwestern Europe. Acta Parasitologia 50 (2), 2005, pp. 161-167
  17. ↑ Roser Adalid, Jordi Torres, Marcos Miñarro, Màrius Vicent Fuentes and Jordi Miquel: First finding of Ityogonimus lorum and I. ocreatus co-infection in the Iberian mole, Talpa occidentalis. Acta Parasitologia 63 (4), 2018, pp. 835-838
  18. ↑ Sadık Demırtaş, Metin Silsüpür, Jeremy B. Searle, David Bilton and İslam Gündüz: What should we call the Levant mole? Unraveling the systematics and demography of Talpa levantis Thomas, 1906 sensu lato (Mammalia: Talpidae). Mammalian Biology 100, 2020, pp. 1-18, doi: 10.1007 / s42991-020-00010-4
  19. ↑ a b Kai He, Akio Shinohara, Kristofer M. Helgen, Mark S. Springer, Xue-Long Jiang and Kevin L. Campbell: Talpid Mole Phylogeny Unites Shrew Moles and Illuminates Overlooked Cryptic Species Diversity. Molecular Biology and Evolution 34 (1), 2016, pp. 78-87
  20. ↑ Angel Cabrera: Three new Spanish insectivores. Annales and Magazine of Natural History 7 (20), 1907, pp. 212-215 ( [2] )
  21. ↑ Angel Cabrera: Micromamíferos nuevos españoles. Boletín de la Sociedad Española de Historia Natural 7, 1907, pp. 222–227 ( [3] )
  22. ↑ Angel Cabrera: Fauna Iberica. Mamiferos. Madrid, 1914, pp. 1–441 (pp. 41–43) ( [4] )
  23. ^ Maria Grazia Filippucci, Giuseppe Nascetti, Ernesto Capanna and Luciano Bullini: Allozyme variation and systematics of European moles of the genus Talpa (Mammalia, Insectivora). Journal of Mammalogy 68 (3), 1987, pp. 487-499
  24. ↑ Anna A. Bannikova, Elena D. Zemlemerova, Paolo Colangelo, Mustafa Sözen, M. Sevindik, Artem A. Kidov, Ruslan I. Dzuev, Boris Kryštufek and Vladimir S. Lebedev: An underground burst of diversity - a new look at the phylogeny and taxonomy of the genus Talpa Linnaeus, 1758 (Mammalia: Talpidae) as revealed by nuclear and mitochondrial genes. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 175, 2015, pp. 930-948
  25. ↑ Roberto Feuda, Anna A. Bannikova, Elena D. Zemlemerova, Mirko D. Febbraro, Anna Loy, Rainer Hutterer, Gaetano Aloise, Alexander E. Zykov, Flavia Annesi and Paolo Colangelo: Tracing the evolutionary history of the mole, Talpa europaea, through mitochondrial DNA phylogeography and species distribution modeling. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 114, 2015, pp. 495-512
  26. ^ F. Cassola: Talpa occidentalis. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017. e.T41483A2953593 ( [5] ); last accessed on March 30, 2020

Web links

Commons : Talpa occidentalis  - collection of images, videos and audio files