Siberian mole

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Siberian mole
Systematics
Order : Insect eater (Eulipotyphla)
Family : Moles (Talpidae)
Subfamily : Old World Moles (Talpinae)
Tribe : Actual moles (Talpini)
Genre : Eurasian moles ( Talpa )
Type : Siberian mole
Scientific name
Talpa altaica
Nikolsky , 1883

The Siberian mole ( Talpa altaica ), also Altai mole is a mammal of the family of moles (Talpidae) within the order of insectivores (Eulipotyphla). It occurs in western and central Siberia in a very extensive area. As a habitat , it uses different forest landscapes and partly open areas. It is the largest representative of the Eurasian moles. Outwardly, the Siberian mole resembles its relatives further west. Special characteristics can be found in the gray fur, the comparatively short tail and in the comparatively small molars. As with the European mole, the eyes are not covered by skin. The animals live underground and dig partially branched tunnels with nest chambers. The exits are marked by typical ejection mounds . Earthworms are the main food, with insects as well . Females give birth to three to six young per litter. A distinctive feature is a diapause , which results in delayed development of the embryos and up to ten months can pass between mating and birth. The species was scientifically described in 1883, but it was already known from various travel reports in the first half of the 19th century. The population is classified as not endangered, but in the past the animals were heavily hunted.

features

Habitus

The Siberian mole is the largest representative of the Eurasian mole. Its head-trunk length is 12.4 to 23.2 cm, plus a 2.0 to 3.4 cm long tail. The weight can be up to 225 g. An examination of 35 individuals revealed a body length of 13.5 to 17 cm, a tail length of 1.6 to 2.6 cm and a weight of 63 to 185 g. Males grow larger than females on average. The tail is comparatively short and corresponds to around 13.8% of the length of the rest of the body. Like all Eurasian moles, the body is cylindrical in shape, the head sits on a short neck and the front feet are turned outwards. Similar to the more well-known European mole ( Talpa europaea ), the eyes are not covered by a fold of skin. In the Siberian mole, the nasal plane is also very wide. The body fur is characterized by a mouse-gray, black-gray or deep brown color. Individual yellowish-brown spots appear on the back, throat and chest. Albinotic individuals have rarely been documented to date . The rear foot length is 1.9 to 2.5 cm. The forefoot becomes 1.8 to 2.4 cm long and 1.9 to 2.3 cm wide.

Skull and dentition features

The skull length is 30.2 to 41.2 mm. The elongated nostrils and the slit-shaped infraorbital foramen are striking features of the skull . The bit is constructed highly variable, normally it is composed of 44 teeth with the following tooth formula : . However, abnormalities often occur in the form of missing, redundant or fused teeth. As a result, the dentition can include 34 to 47 teeth. Most often the upper first and lower third premolars are missing . Additional teeth form in the upper jaw behind the last premolar, but they can also appear in the incisors and in the molar row . Overgrown teeth are only found in the premolars. In general, the teeth are comparatively small, the premolars are about the size of the molars. The front molar of the upper jaw in particular is very narrow and has only a small protoconus. The inner upper incisor is high and resembles a dagger. The entire upper row of teeth turns out to be very short and takes up around 35 to 40% of the length of the skull.

Genetic traits

The diploid chromosome set is 2n = 34. It is composed of 13 meta- to submetacentric and 3 telocentric pairs. The X chromosome is small and has two arms , the Y chromosome is patchy. The first chromosome is the largest.

distribution and habitat

Distribution area of ​​the Siberian mole

The distribution area of ​​the Siberian mole is in northern Asia . It extends over large areas of western and central Siberia between about 80 and 120 degrees east. Its borders are roughly marked by the Irtysh basin in the west and by Lake Baikal and the Lena in the east. In the south it extends from the Salair , Altai and Sajan northwards to the Yenisei at about 68 to 69 ° north latitude. As a result, the species occurs in Russia as well as in northern Kazakhstan and Mongolia . The preferred habitats consist of mosaic-like forest steppe landscapes with deciduous and mixed forests, the animals can also be found in the areas of the taiga and on high mountain meadows. They often occur in forests with dense subsurface vegetation and bushes that thrive on humus-rich soils with a high water table. They are less common in dark coniferous forests, and they avoid floodplain and marshland . The Siberian mole migrates in regions with regular flooding or with spring melt, looking for water in summer, but moving to higher areas in autumn. In mountainous areas it penetrates up to 2000 to 3500 m above sea level. The population density in western Siberia is about 0.5 to 2.5 individuals per square kilometer, in mixed forests it increases to 1 to 3 animals per hectare .

Way of life

Territorial behavior

Like other Eurasian moles, the Siberian mole lives underground and creates tunnels and passages. In dry parts of the year it usually digs deeper. Some of its passages also lead through snow or fallen leaves, the latter can often be observed during periods of rain. The entrances to the tunnels are indicated by ejection mounds ( molehills ). These have a diameter of 48 cm and are around 15 cm high. In spring there is often only one hill per hectare . The tunnels have a width of 5 to 8 cm, are between 1 and 29 cm deep and extend over around 90 m in length. Round nest chambers with a diameter of 4 to 25 cm connect up to half a dozen tunnels. Some of these corridors run horizontally and serve as an air supply or as an escape route. The chambers are mainly located in well-moistened soil, which is free of snow early, and are located under tree roots or rocks for protection. Inside there is a nest made of dry plant material. Typically the Siberian Mole is active all day, but most digging activities take place between 9:00 p.m. and 1:00 a.m. at night. He can also swim well and moves in the water at around 1 km / h.

The Siberian mole migrates seasonally. In humid periods it seeks higher regions and returns to valleys in drier periods of the year. In poor external conditions, the animals cover distances of up to 2.5 km and remain hidden in the tunnels. The spatial activities are limited to around 50 to 70 m² in spring. Neighboring individuals are at a distance of 300 to 500 m from each other.

nutrition

The main diet of the Siberian mole is composed of invertebrates . Earthworms , which were found in 85.3 to 100% of all stomach contents examined, have the largest proportion . They represent a total of 63.0 to 73.6% of the amount of food captured. Often the earthworms are stunned by mutilating the front segments and brought to storage places. Some of these places under molehills can hold up to 150 cc of earthworms. Other prey consists of insects , mostly larvae , and millipedes . Cockchafer , click beetle , weevil , black beetle and gnat dominate the insects . An animal's stomach holds about 0.9 to 3.4 g.

Reproduction

Females are sexually mature at 1 to 1.5 months, males at two years. The mating season takes place from mid-May to late September. A peak is reached in summer between June and August. Young females in their first year of life can mate very late in the year. Delayed egg cell implantation may extend the gestation period to nine to ten months. As a result, there are usually only two to four blastocysts with a diameter of 0.8 to 1 mm per uterine horn in autumn , although they have previously undergone a multi-phase development. The diapause is probably an adaptation to the harsher climatic conditions in northern Asia. The embryo begins in early April and is relatively fast. The young are born from the end of April to the end of May. A litter contains between three and six newborns, an average of 4.6. They are suckled for 35 to 40 days. When weaned in late June or July, they weigh between 80 and 134 g and have thus reached around 80 to 90% of the weight of the adult animals. The mortality rate in this phase is relatively high, so that predominantly only two pups of one litter achieve weaning. It is estimated that 23.3 to 29.6% of the animals survive the first winter, 12.9 to 18.4% the second and 11.8 to 12.9% the third. The maximum life span is five to six years. The most common causes of death include extreme spring melts and winters with little snow. Both can contribute to the disappearance of local populations.

Predators and parasites

There are no known predators that hunt the Siberian mole as the primary food resource. Fleas of the genus Callopsylla have been described as external parasites .

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 Siberian mole is a type from the genus of the Eurasian moles ( Talpa ). The genus includes around a dozen other members, the most famous of which is 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 tribe in turn consists of the mostly burrowing forms of the moles. Other members of the family, on the other hand, only live partially underground, move above ground or follow a semi-aquatic way of life.

Alexander Mikhailovich Nikolsky

The first scientific description of the Siberian mole was made by Alexander Mikhailovich Nikolsky in 1883. He published it in his travelogue about his expedition to the Altai in the summer of 1882. In his detailed description he raised the larger body dimensions compared to the European mole, the small molars and the dark coat color. He also referred to Peter Simon Pallas , who in 1831 in his Zoographia Rosso-Asiatica mentioned a “Siberian mole” in the Lena river valley , but who put it as a European mole. Later, Alexander Theodor von Middendorff in 1853 and Gustav Radde in 1862 reported on Siberian moles as far as the vicinity of Irkutsk , the former assuming that it was a separate species due to the different characteristics from the European mole. Nikolsky gave Barnaul in today's Altai region as the region where his specimen was found . Today the valley of Tourak, southeast of the city, is mostly named as the type locality.

As the only member of the genus Talpa , the Siberian mole is not in the subgenus, also called Talpa , but is referred to Asioscalops . The name was introduced in 1941 by Sergei Uljanowitsch Stroganow as a subgenus and is based on morphological features. These include the shape of the pelvis, the fourth sacral vertebra of which is open to the rear (caecoidal), the large skull that is elongated at the rostrum, the comparatively small molars and the generally short row of teeth. Other authors subsequently added further features such as the different structure of the ascending branch on the lower jaw and the shape of the glans of the penis . Another clear difference to the other Eurasian moles is the diapause , which leads to a delayed development of the embryos . Later, in 1957, Stroganov raised Asioscalops to the genus level, but this was accepted differently in the further course of research history. Josef Kratochvíl and Bohumil Král argued in 1972 based on karyological findings that Asioscalops played an intermediary role between the Eurasian moles and the North American hair- tailed mole ( Parascalops ). All three genera have a very original chromosome set of 2n = 34, only in some representatives of the Caucasian moles and in the blind mole as members of the genus Talpa an extended chromosome set has developed. Shin-ichiro Kawada contradicted this but after more recent karyological investigations in 2002 and came to stronger agreement between Asioscalops and Talpa . Other authors, on the other hand, see evident differences between Talpa and Asioscalops in the morphological and morphometric cranial features , which in their opinion are roughly on par with comparable features in the East Asian moles ( Mogera ). In the eighth volume of the standard work Handbook of the Mammals of the World from 2018, Boris Kryštufek classifies Asioscalops as a sub-genus.

The molecular genetic investigations, which were widely used in the 2000s and 2010s, brought new insights into the relationships between the moles. Accordingly, the Siberian mole forms a monophyletic group together with all other members of the Eurasian mole and thus belongs to the genus Talpa . Within this, it appears as an original branch that, according to investigations by Anna A. Bannikova and colleagues from 2015 , went its own way in the Upper Miocene 5.5 to 6.5 million years ago. A group of forms around the Caucasian mole ( Talpa caucasica ) and the Pater David mole ( Talpa davidiana ) is similarly old . The majority of the other representatives of the Eurasian mole, on the other hand, are assigned to a western group that includes the European mole and its close relatives as well as those of the Levantine mole ( Talpa levantis ).

Fossil finds of moles are generally quite rare. A mandibular fragment of the Siberian mole with the two posterior molars and the alveoli of the anterior molars has been reported from Razdolinskaya 7 cave in the Irkutsk region. Its dimensions fall within the range of variation of the European mole, but in contrast to this and in accordance with the Siberian mole, it has small teeth. The find dates to the Upper Pleistocene .

There is no agreement on the number of subspecies. Sometimes up to half a dozen are reported. Mikhail Vyacheslavovich Saizev recognized a total of three subspecies in 2014:

  • T. a. altaica Nikolsky , 1883; Nominate form ; described from the Altai region ; in most of the distribution area with the exception of the Naryn ridge and southwestern Transbaikalia; darker colored, 9.9 to 19.5 cm long
  • T. a. gusevi Fetisov , 1956; described from Irkutsk Oblast ; Tuva and Southwestern Transbaikalia; rather small, but similar in color to the nominate form, 14.0 to 16.5 cm long
  • T. a. tymensis Egorin , 1937; described from Tomsk Oblast ; in the valleys of the Naryn and Wassyugan ; rather small and lighter, 11.7 to 16.0 cm long

Bannikova and Vladimir S. Lebedev again list six subspecies in 2012:

  • T. a. altaica Nikolsky , 1883; Nominate form; Altai and adjacent areas
  • T. a. gusevi Fetisov , 1956; Tuva and southeastern Transbaikalia
  • T. a. salairica Egorin , 1936; Salair , Kuznetsk Alatau
  • T. a. sibirica Egorin , 1937; Around Mariinsk , basin of Yenisei
  • T. a. suschkini Kastschenko , 1905; Sayan , Krasnoyarsk eastwards to Lake Baikal
  • T. a. tymensis Egorin , 1937; Basin of Wassyugan and Tym

In contrast, in 2018 Kryštufek does not consider the distribution limits between the individual described subspecies to be clear. He therefore classifies the Siberian mole as monotypical .

Threat and protection

The Siberian mole is widespread and relatively common. There are no known major threats to the overall population. The IUCN therefore lists it as “not threatened” ( least concern ). In western Siberia, deforestation and the associated damage to adjacent grasslands can lead to a significant decline in local populations. On the other hand, deforestation in certain regions also creates colonizable areas for the Siberian mole and thus enables a population increase of up to tenfold. In the past it was often hunted, mainly for its fur. Between the 1930s and 1950s, between 180,000 and 185,000 pelts were sold annually in western Siberia alone. In Russia , the Siberian mole is now on the red list of Buryatia , Yakutia and the Omsk Oblast . It occurs in several nature reserves , around 16% of its range is protected in Mongolia alone .

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. 609) ISBN 978-84-16728-08-4
  • М. В. Зайцев, Л. Л. Войта and Б. И. Шефтель: Млекопитающие фауны России и сопредельных территорий. Насекомоядные. Санкт-Петербург, 2014, pp. 1–390 (pp. 152–158)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Shin-ichiro Kawada: Morphological Review of the Japanese Mountain Mole (Eulipotyphla, Talpidae) with the Proposal of a New Genus. Mammal Study 41 (4), 2016, pp. 191-205, doi: 10.3106 / 041.041.0404
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g h М. В. Зайцев, Л. Л. Войта and Б. И. Шефтель: Млекопитающие фауны России и сопредельных территорий. Насекомоядные. Санкт-Петербург, 2014, pp. 1–390 (pp. 152–158)
  3. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l 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. 609) ISBN 978-84-16728-08-4
  4. ↑ Shin-ichiro Kawada, Kazuhiro Koyasu, Elena I. Zholnerovskaya and Sen-ichi Oda: Analysis of dental anomalies in the Siberian mole, Talpa altaica (Insectivora, Talpidae). Archives of Oral Biology 51 (11), 2006, pp. 1029-1039
  5. ↑ a b Josef Kratochvíl and Bohumil Král: Karyotypes and phylogenetic relationships of certain species of the genus Talpa (Talpidae, Insectivora). Zoolické Listy 21, 1972, pp. 99–208 ( [1] )
  6. ^ Stanisław Fedyk and Elena Y. Evanitskaya: Chromosomes of the Siberian Mole (Talpa altaica Nokolsky, 1883). Acta Theriologica 17 (3), 1972, pp. 496-498
  7. ↑ a b c Shin-ichiro Kawada, M. Harada, AS Grafodatsky and S. Oda: Cytogenetic study of the Siberian mole, Talpa altaica (Insectivora: Talpidae) and karyological relationships within the genus Talpa. Mammalia 66 (1), 2002, pp. 53-62
  8. ↑ 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
  9. ↑ Ю. Б. Баевскй: Цито- и кариометрические исследвания бластоцист крота (Talpa altaica) периода диапаузы. Доклады Академии Наук СССР 176 (5), 1967, pp. 1198–1200
  10. ↑ Б. С. Юдин: Особенности размножение сибирского крота Asioscalops altaica Nikolsky, 1883. Acta Theriologica 19 (24). 1974, pp. 355-366
  11. ^ Robert E. Lewis: Descriptions of New Fleas from Nepal, with Notes on the Genus Callopsylla Wagner, 1934 (Siphonaptera: Ceratophyllidae). The Journal of Parasitology 57 (4), 1971, pp. 761-771
  12. ↑ 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
  13. ↑ 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
  14. ↑ Peter Simon Pallas: Zoographia Rosso-Asiatica, sistens omnium animalium in extenso Imperio Rossico et adiacentibus maribus observatorum recensionem, domicilia, mores et descriptiones anatomen atque icones plurimorum. St. Petersburg, 1831, pp. 1–568 (pp. 126–127) ( [2] )
  15. ↑ Alexander Theodor von Middendorff: Journey to the extreme north and east of Siberia. Volume Two, Part Two: Mammals, Birds, and Amphibians. St. Petersburg, 1853, pp. 1–256 (p. 77) ( [3] )
  16. ^ Gustav Radde: Journeys in the south of Eastern Siberia in the years 1855-1859, including volume one: Mammal fauna. St. Petersburg, 1862, pp. 1–327 (p. 115) ( [4] )
  17. ↑ Александр Михайлович Никольский: Путешествие в Алтайские горы летом 1882 года. Труды Санкт-Петербургскаго Общества Естествоиспытателей 14 (1), 1883, pp. 150–218 (pp. 165–170)
  18. ^ Sergei U. Stroganov: Insectivore mammals of the fauna of the USSR. Doklady Akademii Nauk 33 (3), 1941, pp. 270-272
  19. ↑ Marija Starodubaitė, Mikhail Potapov, Aniolas Sruoga, Dalius Butkauskas and Vadim Evsikov: Talpa ir Asioscalops genčių kurmių morfologinų požymių skirtumai. Veterinarija ir Zootechnika 54 (76), 2011, pp. 64-70
  20. ↑ 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
  21. ↑ Jean-Pierre Hugot, Se Hun Gu, Carlos Feliu, Jacint Ventura, Alexis Ribas, Jérôme Dormion, Richard Yanagihara and Violaine Nicolas: Genetic variability of Talpa europaea and Nova hantavirus (NVAV) in France. Bulletin de l'Académie Vétérinaire de France 167 (3), 2014, pp. 177-184
  22. ↑ 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
  23. ↑ Barbara Rzebik-Kowalska: New data on Soricomorpha (Lipotyphla, Mammalia) from the Pliocene and Pleistocene of Transbaikalia and Irkutsk Region (Russia). Acta zoologica cracoviensia 50A (1-2), 2007, pp. 15-48
  24. ^ Anna A. Bannikova and Vladimir S. Lebedev: Order Eulipotyphla. In: IY Pavlinov and AA Lissovsky (Eds.): The Mammals of Russia: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. Moscow, 2012, pp. 25-72
  25. ↑ M. Stubbe, R. Samiya, J. Ariunbold, V. Buuveibaatar, S. Dorjderem, T. Monkhzul, M. Otgonbaatar, M. Tsogbadrakh and Gankhuyag: Talpa altaica. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017. e.T41478A22321277 ( [5] ); last accessed on July 27, 2020

Web links

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