Roman mole

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Roman mole
Systematics
Order : Insect eater (Eulipotyphla)
Family : Moles (Talpidae)
Subfamily : Old World Moles (Talpinae)
Tribe : Actual moles (Talpini)
Genre : Eurasian moles ( Talpa )
Type : Roman mole
Scientific name
Talpa romana
Thomas , 1902

The Roman mole ( Talpa romana ) is a mammal of the family of moles (Talpidae) within the order of insectivores (Eulipotyphla). It occurs in central and southern Italy . There the animals inhabit different habitats from meadows to forests and humanly shaped landscapes. Externally, the Roman mole corresponds to the much better known European mole . But he is taller, has skin-covered eyes and stronger teeth. The animals live solitary and are strongly territorial. Each individual maintains their own territory in which they create their underground passages and tunnels. The diet consists of invertebrates , which the Roman mole opportunistically prey on. In the reproductive phase, each female carries two to three young per litter. The species was scientifically introduced in 1902. Sometimes it was considered a subspecies of the European mole, but the closest relative is the blind mole . The stock is assessed as not endangered.

features

Habitus

The Roman mole is slightly larger than the European mole ( Talpa europaea ). Its head-torso length varies from 12.0 to 16.0 cm in males and from 9.5 to 15.5 cm in females. The tail is correspondingly 2.4 to 3.7 cm or 2.2 to 3.5 cm long. The weight of the males is 74 to 134 g, that of the females 61 to 112 g. Males are therefore around 18% heavier than females. In its external appearance, the Roman mole resembles the European mole and is characterized by a cylindrical and robust body, a short neck and shovel-like front feet. The fur color is also kept rather dark. In contrast to the European mole, the Roman mole has a fold of skin covering the eyes and the tail is not so clearly conical . Females have four pairs of teats . The rear foot length is 1.7 cm.

Skull and dentition features

The skull is large and robust and equipped with a massive rostrum . The length of the skull ranges from 31.8 to 37.7 mm, the width from 16.6 to 18.8 mm. The rostrum becomes 10.1 to 11.9 mm wide. The teeth consists of 44 teeth with the following tooth formula : . Oligodontia often occurs , so that more than a third of all individuals are missing between one and four premolars . Surplus teeth, on the other hand, are rare. The mesostyle, a small hump between the two main cusps on the lip side (Paraconus and Metaconus), is always two-pointed, whereas the former is single-pointed as a distinguishing feature from the European mole. The length of the upper teeth of the Roman mole is also relatively longer compared to the length of the skull than that of the European mole. The upper molars are 12.8 to 15.1 mm long.

Genetic traits

The diploid chromosome set is 2n = 34. The X chromosome is medium-sized and metacentric, the Y chromosome is speckled.

distribution and habitat

Distribution area of ​​the Roman mole

The Roman mole is endemic to central and southern Italy . To the north, its distribution area extends to Umbria , further north it is replaced by an independent line of the European mole . In the vicinity of Assisi there is a narrow strip of overlap where both species appear sympatric . The stocks in Sicily are extinct, the last evidence dates back to 1885. The habitat of the species includes various types of landscape, from dunes to cultural landscapes, olive groves and meadows to deciduous forests and mountain heaths. The animals can be found from sea level to altitudes around 1500 m, in rare cases up to 2000 m. However, evidence of the blind mole , which is better adapted to the harsh climate there, is mostly available from higher mountain areas above the tree line . Investigations into the habitat use of the Roman mole show that it only takes up a small part of its potentially possible range.

Way of life

Territorial behavior

Like all Eurasian moles, the Roman mole lives underground and digs tunnels and passages, the exits of which are marked by mounds of earth ( molehills ). The course of the day consists of a regular alternation of activity and rest phases, with each cycle lasting around three to four hours. Female animals are more active between 6 a.m. and 12 p.m. and between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. Longer rest periods take place after midnight between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. and at noon between 12 a.m. and 3 p.m. Overall, females have extended periods of activity and rest, each lasting an average of 131 and 155 minutes at a time. In males, the activity phases with an average of 13 to 19 minutes are consistently significantly shorter than the rest phases with 64 to 85 minutes. During the mating season, the females synchronize their rest periods, while the males then have a less regular daily rhythm. During the dry summer months, animal activity can generally decline.

The territorial behavior of the Roman mole is very pronounced. The animals live solitary and use territories that can overlap with females and individuals of the opposite sex, but never with each other with males. The overlap of the action spaces is greater, the more densely the food resources are distributed. In general, males with 3116 to 4300 m² have larger territories than females with 1658 to 2804 m². Investigations near Rome revealed only marginal differences in the size of the territories for female individuals over the course of the year; the area extends from 1762 to 1794 m². However, the boundaries and location are constantly changing. Male animals, on the other hand, enlarge their territory significantly during the reproductive phase. While the territories cover around 1665 m² in the pre-productive phase, they sometimes take up more than three times the area at 7995 m² during the mating season. This obviously increases the chances of the males being able to mate with several females. Subordinate fluctuations in the area sizes can arise due to the presence of prey animals with smaller dimensions with a more abundant supply. There is no dependence of the extent of the territories on the height or weight of individual individuals.

nutrition

The main food of the Roman mole consists of earthworms , mollusks and larvae of insects . Over the course of the year it does not prefer any particular prey group, so that the animals can be viewed as food opportunists . However, the composition varies regionally and seasonally. Insect larvae then dominate, especially in the drier, warm periods of the year, when earthworms become rarer. In central Italy, according to studies of stomach contents, the weight proportion of earthworms in the diet falls from around 60% in the winter and spring months to sometimes below 30% in summer, while at the same time the proportion of insect larvae from less than 10% to around 50%. can increase.

Reproduction

Pregnant females have so far been observed in April. They usually carried two to three embryos . In contrast to the European mole, the males of the Roman mole do not undertake extensive migrations in search of receptive females.

Predators and parasites

The barn owl is an important predator of the Roman mole . The main parasites are worms . These include flukes as Ityogonimus and nematodes as Capillaria , Parastrongyloides , Spirura or Tricholinstowia . Compared to the European mole, the worm parasites of the Roman mole are less species-rich.

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 Roman mole is a type from the genus of the Eurasian moles ( Talpa ). The genus includes around a dozen other representatives, the best-known being the European mole ( Talpa europaea ). The Eurasian moles form part of the tribe of the real moles (Talpini) and the family of moles (Talpidae). The actual moles in turn summarize the mostly digging relatives of the moles, while other members of the family only partially live underground, move above ground or have a semi-aquatic way of life.

Oldfield Thomas

The Roman mole was scientifically introduced by Oldfield Thomas in 1902. Its first description is based on two individuals from the vicinity of Rome. The holotype , an animal with a body length of 12.6 cm, comes from Ostia , another individual from Frascati , the former locality represents the terra typica . Oldfield particularly emphasized the robust teeth of the Roman mole, which was later also done by Gerrit S. Miller could be confirmed with the help of further copies.

For a while, the Roman mole was listed as a subspecies of the European mole, from which it differs not only in its distinctive dentition but also in its skin covering the eyes. There are also deviations in the anatomy of the sacrum , which in the Roman mole has a caecoidal structure (the opening of the foramen on the fourth sacral vertebra is directed backwards), whereas in the European mole it is a europaeoidal one (the opening of the foramen on the fourth sacral vertebra is covered by a bone bridge ). Today, both species are no longer considered to be more closely related, which is also supported by biochemical and molecular genetic data. In most of these analyzes, there are closer relationships between the Roman mole and the blind mole ( Talpa caeca ). The separation of the two lines took place during the transition from the Pliocene to the Pleistocene around 2.48 million years ago. The line that led to the European mole, on the other hand, had separated almost 3 million years ago. However, hybrid forms that carry alleles of both species occasionally occur in the contact area of ​​the distribution of the Roman mole and the European mole . However, since no backcrossed animals have been detected so far, this mixing probably took place in the past.

Occasionally, the Roman mole was also assigned the Balkan mole ( Talpa stankovici ) and the Ognev mole ( Talpa ognevi ) as subspecies, for the latter an integration into the Caucasian mole ( Talpa caucasica ) was also possible. Genetically, neither the Roman, Balkan, nor Ognev mole are closely related. today all three forms are largely regarded as independent.

Subspecies of the Roman mole are not known. However, certain variations can be observed across the distribution area, which are regarded as clinical . Smaller individuals occur mainly in the southern peripheral area, whereas the animals in the north are significantly larger. Also noteworthy are changes in the skull morphology of individual populations , which mainly affect the brain area and the snout. This can be seen in a group near Lecce , for example, whose members mostly have a longer skull and a wider palate. The causes of these variations are not clear.

Threat and protection

The IUCN classifies the Roman mole as “not threatened” ( least concern ). The species is widespread in central and southern Italy. The population size was not determined, but is considered stable with only a few declines. There are no known threats to the population; in areas with intensive arable farming, local declines can occur. In general, the animals are viewed as pests. They are present in several protected areas.

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 (p. 612) ISBN 978-84-16728-08-4

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i 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 (p. 612) ISBN 978-84-16728-08-4
  2. ↑ a b Ernesto Capanna: Caryotype et morphologie crânienne de Talpa romana Thomas de terra typica. Mammalia 45 (1), 1981, pp. 71-82
  3. ↑ a b A. Loy and E. Capanna: A parapatric contact area between two species of moles: character displacement investigated through the geometric morphometrics of skull. Acta Zoologica Academiae Scientarum Hungaricae 44 (1/2), 1998, pp. 151-164
  4. ^ A b 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. ↑ E. Gornung, M. Volleth, E. Capanna and R. Castiglia: Comparative cytogenetics of moles (Eulipotyphla, Talpidae): chromosomal differences in Talpa romana and T. europaea. Cytogenetic Genome Research 121, 2008, pp. 249-254, doi: 10.1159 / 000138892
  6. ↑ a b Anna Loy, Massimo Capula, Antonella Palombi and Ernesto Capanna: Genetic and morphometric evidence of introgression between two species of moles (Insectivora: Talpa europaea and Talpa romana) in central Italy. Journal of Zoology 254 (2), 2001, pp. 229-238, doi: 10.1017 / S0952836901000747
  7. ↑ Anna Loy, Paolo Colangelo, Flavia Annesi and Ernesto Capanna: Origin and evolution of Western European moles (genus Talpa, Insectivora): a multidisciplinary approach. Mammal Study 30, 2005, pp. S13-S17
  8. ↑ Anna Loy, Marcelo H. Cassini, Paolo Colangelo and Mirko Febbraro: Distribution, spatial interaction and niche analysis in three species of European moles (genus Talpa, Soricomorpha: Mammalia) in Italy. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 122 (4), 2017, pp. 872-882
  9. ↑ Anna Borroni, Anna Loy and Cristiano Bertolucci: Daily and circadian rhythms of rest and activity of Talpa romana Thomas (Mammalia, Insectivora: Talpidae). Preliminary results. Rendiconti Lincei. Scienze fisiche e naturali 9 (10), 1999, pp. 89-99
  10. ↑ Dianna Loy, Eugenio Duprée and R. David Stone: Biology of talpa romana thomas (mammalia, insectivora: talpidae). 1. Home range and activity patterns: preliminary results from a radiotelemetric study. Rendiconti Lincei. Science fisiche e naturali 3, 1992, pp. 173-182
  11. ^ A b A. Loy, Eugenio Dupre and E. Capanna: Territorial Behavior in Talpa romana, a Fossorial Insectivore from Southcentral Italy. Journal of Mammalogy 75 (2), 1994, pp. 529-535
  12. ↑ a b Francesca Beolchini, E. Dupre, and Anna Loy: Territorial behavior of Talpa romana in two different habitats: food resources and reproductive needs as potential causes of variation. Journal for Mammalian Science 61, 1996, pp. 193-201
  13. ↑ F. Beolchini and A. Loy: Diet of syntopic moles Talpa romana and Talpa europaea in central Italy. Mammalian Biology 69 (2), 2004, pp. 140-144, doi: 10.1078 / 1616-5047-00127
  14. ↑ Longino Contoli: Sistemi trofici e corologia: dati su Soricidae, Talpidae ed Arvicolidae d'Italia predati da Tyto alba (Scopoli 1796). Hystrix 1 (2), 1986, pp. 95-118
  15. ^ Ján Obuch and Petr Benda: Food of the Barn Owl (Tyto alba) in the Eastern Mediterranean. Slovakian Raptore Journal 3, 2009, pp. 41-50
  16. ^ C. Milazzo, J. Casanova, G. Aloise, A. Ribas and M. Cagnin: The helminth community of Talpa romana (Thomas, 1902) (Insectivora, Talpidae) in southern Italy. Parasitology Research 88, 2002, pp. 979-983
  17. ↑ Alexis Ribas and Joan C. Casanova: Helminths of Talpa europaea (Insectivora, Talpidae) in southwestern Europe. Acta Parasitologia 50 (2), 2005, pp. 161-167
  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 c 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. ↑ Oldfield Thomas: On the mole of the Roman district. Annals and magazine of Natural history 7 (1), 1902, pp. 516-517 ( [1] )
  21. ^ 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) ( [2] )
  22. ^ A b 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
  23. ↑ a b P. Colangelo, AA Bannikova, B. Kryštufek, VS Lebedev, F. Annesi, E. Capanna and A. Loy: Molecular systematics and evolutionary biogeography of the genus Talpa (Soricomorpha: Talpidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 55, 2010, pp. 372-380
  24. ↑ a b 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. ↑ Anna Loy, S. di Martino and D. Capolongo: Patterns of geographic variation of Talpa romana Thomas: preliminary results derived from a geometric morphometric approach. Mammalia 60 (1), 1996, pp. 77-89
  27. ^ F. James Rohlfs, Anna Loy and Marco Corti: Morphometric Analysis of Old World Talpidae (Mammalia, Insectivora) Using Partial-Warp Scores. Systematic Biology 45 (3), 1996, pp. 344-362
  28. ^ G. Amori: Talpa romana. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016. e.T41484A2953688 ( [3] ); last accessed on April 10, 2020

Web links

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