53-1

2022/53/1

ISSN : 0024-7774 (print), 1804-6460 (online)
Editor in Chief : Petr Benda

Unexplored aspects of African mole-rat thermal biology: Daily energy expenditure and development of thermoregulation in Fukomys darlingi (Rodentia: Bathyergidae)

In our study, we analyzed two poorly known aspects of thermal biology in subterranean rodents, the African mole-rats, that being daily energy expenditure and development of thermoregulation in juvenile mole-rat using the social Mashona mole-rat, Fukomys darlingi from southern Malawi. We performed…

On the retinae of Glis and Graphiurus: photoreceptor and ganglion cell populations, an absence of shortwave-sensitive cones, and some other features (Rodentia: Gliridae)

The retina of the fat dormouse Glis glis was studied histologically. Opsin immunolabeling identified an unusually dense population of rod photoreceptors (ca. 600,000–780,000/mm²) and a low-density population of L cone photoreceptors containing the longwave-sensitive (LWS) cone opsin, with a shallow…

Magnetoreception in mammals and birds: a comparison (Mammalia, Aves)

The magnetic compass systems of birds and mammals differ in their functional modes and are based on different physical principles: The inclination compass of birds is not sensitive to polarity; it is light-dependent; with the direction indicated by spin-chemical processes in the photo-pigment…

Heart attack frequency and geomagnetic field instability (Primates: Hominidae)

It is believed that the high activity of sun with eruptions causing instability of the magnetic field of the Earth cause various health problems in sensitive people, including such events as heart attack. We analysed the daily frequency of patients admitted with heart attack to the Cardiocentre of…

Spying the dog: Wearable action camera as a tool to understand dog’s behaviour during homing (Carnivora: Canidae)

Automated data collection methods, such as using GPS collars and animal-borne cameras, represent an efficient way of data collection and may be instrumental in the research of animal orientation, including magnetoreception. In this study, we designed a wearable dog action camera (DAC) system for…

African bats in the collection of the National Museum, Prague (Chiroptera). I. Bats from Zambia

A list of 139 specimens of bats belonging to 32 species of eight families originating from Zambia, housed in the collection of the National Museum, Prague, Czech Republic, is presented in a systematical review. The species lists are complemented by comments on distribution and morphometry data. The…

Morphology and adaptation of the auricle in Soricidae (Lipotyphla)

Shrews look rather similar at first sight, but a closer look reveals many different specializations according to different lifestyles. In this study, we took a closer look on the auricle of shrews. To reveal morphological adaptations, we analysed the inclination of the outer ear in relation to the…

Verified occurrence of Felis silvestris in Bohemia (Czech Republic) in 2010–2021 (Carnivora: Felidae)

In total, 616 reliable records (C1, C2 category sensu SCALP) of wildcat occurrence in Bohemia were collected and analysed in 11 monitoring seasons, “wildcat years” (WCY), 2010–2021. Camera-trapping data accounted for 95% of the dataset, the rest of the records were verified by the genetic analysis…

Species on an excursion – Mammals and other faunistic records from 16 years of zoological field trips to the Šumava Mountains and South Bohemia (Czech Republic) under the direction of Hynek Burda

Between 2001 and 2016, 31 zoological excursions of the Department of General Zoology of the University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany) took place in South Bohemia (Czech Republic), mainly in the the Šumava Mountains south of Sušice. Under the leadership of Professor Hynek Burda and his colleagues, more…