Macedonian mouse

Macedonian mouse
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
Genus: Mus
Species:
M. macedonicus
Binomial name
Mus macedonicus
Petrov & Ruzic, 1983

The Macedonian mouse (Mus macedonicus) is a species of rodent in the family Muridae and order Rodentia. This rodent occurs in the south Balkans, Asia Minor, the Caucasus and the Middle East south to Israel and Jordan and east to Iran.[1] It is considered part of a Palearctic group along with three other species: the house mouse, steppe mouse, and Algerian mouse.[2]

Description

The Macedonian mouse is a small rodent, weighing 15 grams (0.53 oz).[3] Fur color is variable across its range; in a study of numerous specimens in Turkey, Macedonian mice were found to have back colors ranging from dark brown to pale light brown to dark-reddish brown.[4] There is a distinct line of demarcation along the flanks that separates top and bottom coloration.[4] The bottom coloration ranged from whitish grey, pure white, yellowish white, and reddish white.[4] The ears have tiny white hairs.[4] This rodent has a tail that is dark brown on top and lighter on bottom.[4] The bottoms of the Macedonian mouse's feet are bare while the tops of their feet have white hairs.[4] Macedeonan mice are nocturnal.[3]

Morphology

The sutura squamalis has distinction from other species because it is smoothed or protrudes slightly forward.[4] The upper portion of the zygomatic arch is also narrower than the lower portion.[4] Macedonian mice found in Israel are smaller than their northern counterparts.[5]

Physiology

Body mass of Macedonian mice exposed to short photoperiods increased - essentially they got bigger to stay warmer when it is cold.[3] The short photoperiods also increased their resistance to cold while long photoperiods increased their ability to manage higher temperatures.[3] Food consumption and waste production are lower in the mice that have longer photoperiods.[3] These physiological changes allow the mice to be well adapted to the changes that occur in the Mediterranean on a seasonal basis.[3] This mouse also shows a genetic tendency for glial fibrillary acidic protein in their lens epithelial cells.[6] This is a new marker of polymorphism in the genus Mus.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b Kryštufek, B.; Vohralík, V. (2017) [errata version of 2016 assessment]. "Mus macedonicus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T13966A115117069. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T13966A22404035.en. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
  2. ^ Suzuki, Hitoshi. "Temporal, spatial, and ecological modes of evolution of Eurasian Mus based on mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequences". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 33: 626–646. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.08.003.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Haim, A. (1999). "The thermoregulatory and metabolic responses to photoperiod manipulations of the Macedonian mouse (Mus macedonicus), a post-fire invader". Journal of Thermal Biology. 24: 279–286. doi:10.1016/s0306-4565(99)00024-8.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Colat, Ercument. "The Morphological Analysis of Mus domesticus and Mus macedonicus (Mammalia: Rodentia) in Turkey". Tubitak. 30: 309–317.
  5. ^ Orth, A. "Two Deeply Divergent Mitochondrial clades in the wild mouse Mus macedonicus reveal multiple glacial refuges south of Caucasus". Heredity. 89: 353–357. doi:10.1038/sj.hdy.6800147.
  6. ^ a b Boyer, Sylvie. "Recent evolutionary origin of the expression of the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in lens epithelial cells. A molecular and genetic analysis of various mouse species". Molecular Brain Research. 10.
  • Musser, G. G. and M. D. Carleton. 2005. Superfamily Muroidea. pp. 894–1531 in Mammal Species of the World a Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. D. E. Wilson and D. M. Reeder eds. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore.