Whisker touch guides canopy exploration in a nocturnal, arboreal rodent, the Hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius)

Dormouse numbers are declining in the UK due to habitat loss and fragmentation. We know that dormice are nocturnal, arboreal, and avoid crossing open spaces between habitats, yet how they navigate around their canopy is unknown. As other rodents use whisker touch sensing to navigate and explore thei...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Comparative Physiology 2017-02, Vol.203 (2), p.133-142
Main Authors: Arkley, Kendra, Tiktak, Guuske P., Breakell, Vicki, Prescott, Tony J., Grant, Robyn A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal Physiology
Animals
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Ecosystem
Exploratory Behavior - physiology
Female
Life Sciences
Male
Muscardinus avellanarius
Myoxidae - physiology
Neurosciences
Original Paper
Touch - physiology
Trees
Vibrissae - physiology
Video Recording - methods
Zoology
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Dormouse numbers are declining in the UK due to habitat loss and fragmentation. We know that dormice are nocturnal, arboreal, and avoid crossing open spaces between habitats, yet how they navigate around their canopy is unknown. As other rodents use whisker touch sensing to navigate and explore their environment, this study investigates whether Hazel dormice ( Muscardinus avellanarius ) employ their whiskers to cross between habitats. We analysed high-speed video footage of dormice exploring freely in flat and climbing arenas in near darkness and using infrared light illumination. We confirm that, like rats and mice, dormice move their whiskers back and forth continuously (~10 Hz) in a motion called whisking and recruit them to explore small gaps (
ISSN:0340-7594
1432-1351
DOI:10.1007/s00359-017-1146-z