Estimating the size of European rabbits consumed by predators: Relationship between body mass and tooth dimensions
A method for estimating body mass of European rabbits Oryctolagus cunicnlus (Linnaeus, 1758) based on tooth dimensions is proposed. Regression models identified significant relationships between the body mass of 87 rabbits and individual tooth length, breadth, product of tooth length and breadth, an...
| Autores: | , , |
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| Formato: | artículo |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2003 |
| País: | España |
| Recursos: | Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) |
| Repositorio: | DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:digital.csic.es:10261/51571 |
| Acesso em linha: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/51571 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palavra-chave: | Oryctolagus cuniculus Lynx pardinus body mass Prediction |
| Resumo: | A method for estimating body mass of European rabbits Oryctolagus cunicnlus (Linnaeus, 1758) based on tooth dimensions is proposed. Regression models identified significant relationships between the body mass of 87 rabbits and individual tooth length, breadth, product of tooth length and breadth, and whether or not the individual was infected with myxomatosis. Dimensions of 10 of 14 different teeth explained over 80% of variation in body mass, and those teeth were selected as adequate predictors of rabbit body mass. Models were tested using teeth from 16 additional rabbits of known body mass. Body mass, predicted on the basis of 9 of the 10 selected teeth, was statistically indistinguishable from the observed values for all 16 individuals. When myxomatosis infection status of the rabbit was included in the model, aU 10 selected teeth yielded predictions statistically indistinguishable from those observed. Prediction errors can be computed permitting statistical comparison of the average predicted value of body mass from different samples of rabbits. The model is useful in estimating rabbit body masses from teeth recovered from feces of predators and it will facilitate testing of hypotheses on size-selective predation. The method was applied to rabbit teeth found in feeal samples from the Iberiaa lynx Lynx pardinus collected over a one-year period. Lyax preyed preferentially upon younger rabbits during the peak breeding period of this lagomorph |
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