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Social structure of feral house mouse (Mus musculus L.) populations: Effects of resource partitioning

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Summary

  1. 1.

    Social structure of hourse mouse (Mus musculus L.) populations in quarter-acre (0.1-ha) enclosures was organized differently with respect to centralized and decentralized food (corn) sites. Analysis of social structure indicated a well defined demic organization in populations containing a single, centralized food depot, whereas social structure in decentralized grids was more flexible.

  2. 2.

    A newley-derived dominance index, based on urinary marking patterns, indicated that social dominants were associated with food site location. Subordinate males were less likely to be trapped at food sites in centralized grids than were dominants; subordinate males were excluded to a lesser extent from food sites in decentralized grids.

  3. 3.

    Standard pairing experiments upon termination of the study substantiated that dominant males had significantly higher urinary marking patterns than subordinate males.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, Miami University, 45056, Oxford, Ohio, USA

    Robert F. Noyes, Gary W. Barrett & Douglas H. Taylor

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  1. Robert F. Noyes
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  2. Gary W. Barrett
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  3. Douglas H. Taylor
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Noyes, R.F., Barrett, G.W. & Taylor, D.H. Social structure of feral house mouse (Mus musculus L.) populations: Effects of resource partitioning. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 10, 157–163 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00299679

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00299679

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