Effect of photoperiod on body mass, food intake and body composition in the field vole, Microtus agrestis

Effect of photoperiod on body mass, food intake and body composition in the field vole, Microtus agrestis.

Many small mammals respond to seasonal changes in photoperiod by altering body mass and adiposity. These animals may provide valuable models for understanding the regulation of energy balance. Here, we present data on the field vole (Microtus agrestis) - a previously uncharacterised example of photoperiod-induced changes in body mass. We examined the effect of increased day length on body mass,...

Influence of Photoperiod and Nutrition on Food Composition, Body Condition and Reproduction in the Pine Vole

Sebaceous glands on the hindquarters of the vole, Microtus agrestis.

on the hindquarters at the age of about 3 months. In the following 1 to 2 months, hair is lost from these regions revealing raised patches of bright pink skin. Each patch is about 20 mm long and 15 mm wide, has a coarse texture, one or two characteristic folds (Pl. 1, Fig. 1) and a musty odour. Histologically, the skin contains very greatly enlarged holocrine sebaceous glands (Pl. 1, Fig. 2). T...

Hypothalamo-hypophysial control of ovulation in the vole (Microtus agrestis).

Electrical stimulation of the anterior hypothalamus of the vole, Microtus agrestis, usually results in ovulation, whereas stimulation of areas in the posterior hypothalamus do not. Ovulation can also be elicited by injections of sheep median-eminence extracts, and by preparations ofsheep luteinizing hormone. Observations on the number of corpora lutea formed, and ripe Graafian follicles remaini...

Effects of sheep grazing on abundance and predators of field vole (Microtus agrestis) in upland Britain

A technique using fresh feeding signs as an index of density was validated and used to survey the effects of sheep grazing on vole population densities in four upland habitats in the northern Peak District National Park, UK. In grazed areas Molinia caerulea grasslands supported most voles, Nardus stricta grasslands supported fewer and Eriophorum vaginatum and Calluna vulgaris-dominated areas su...