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Craniometric data of Apodemus sylvaticus in Slovakia

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Abstract

A craniometric analysis of skulls of the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) from three different parts of Slovakia (north-western, northern and south-eastern) was conducted. Twenty-nine skull and dental variables were measured and evaluated on a sample of 56 adult individuals. The overlap of the values of the measured traits was high. Moreover, the differences among the populations were different for each trait. The non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis test and Discriminant function analysis showed variations in the cranial variables among the different parts of country. We have identified six morphometric variables suitable for the differentiation of populations on the basis of discriminant analysis. Significant differences were confirmed in the characteristics between the analyzed regions; thus, we can speak about small-scale cran-iometric differentiation. In addition, the results could indicate the influence of altitude, even over a shorter geographic distance between 48–49° N. Moreover, restriction of genetic interaction between the populations may in the future lead to even greater differences between the populations in Slovakia.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Mr. David McLean for linguistic revision of the manuscript. Our thanks also go to Mr. Ján Obuch, for providing the material from private collections. The handling of small mammals complies with the laws of the Slovak Republic (No. 297/108/06). This work was prepared with the financial help of grants no. VEGA 2/0060/14 and VEGA 2/0059/15.

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  1. Institute of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, P. J. Šafárik University, SK 04001, Košice, Slovakia

    Alexander Čnády

  2. Institute of Parasitology, Slovak Academy of Science, SK 04001, Košice, Slovakia

    Ladislav Mošanský

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  1. Alexander Čnády
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Correspondence to Alexander Čnády.

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Čnády, A., Mošanský, L. Craniometric data of Apodemus sylvaticus in Slovakia. Biologia 70, 974–981 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1515/biolog-2015-0105

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