Acta Zoologica Lituanica, 2011, Volumen 21, Numerus 3

ISSN 1648-6919

Distribution anD taxonomic status of the eastern spiny mouse (Acomys dimidiAtus) (roDentia: muriDae) in iran

taher GhaDirian1,2, saeed mohammaDi1*, mohammad r. ashrafZaDeh3, mitra shariati naJafabaDi4, tayebeh shahi5, amir h. Khaleghi hamiDi2

1Department of Environmental Sciences, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran 2Mammals Research & Conservation Unit, Plan for the Land Society, Tehran, Iran 3Department of Environment, Khorramshahr University of Marine Science and Technology, Khorramshahr, Iran 4Department of Environment, University of Tehran, Iran 5Department of Environment (DoE), Minab, Iran * – Corresponding author: Saeed Mohammadi E-mail: mohammadi7517@yahoo.com

abstract. A total of 52 individuals of Acomys dimidiatus were collected in Bushehr Province, Minab and Geno Biosphere Reserve in Hormozgan Province, Iran for the first time during the summer of 2003 and 2005. ANOVA results revealed significant differences in all characters of these rodents between the study sites, with the exception of the length of diastema and that of anterior palatine foramen. The Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that Khaeez and Jam samples (Boushehr) belonged to separate groups These samples were similar in cranial width. Minab samples had a positive as-sociation with occipitonasal, condylobasal, zygomatic and mandible lengths. Some of Geno samples were similar to Minab samples, but others differed because of the negative relationship with such characters as occipitonasal, condylobasal, zygomatic and mandible lengths. The comparison of cranial characteristics revealed the importance of occipitonasal and condylobasal lengths in distinguishing between the populations. Our results suggest that these morphometric characters are good indices for distinguishing between samples from different study sites. It was established that A. dimidiatus feeds both on plant- and animal-based food.Key words: Acomys dimidiatus, taxonomy, distribution, Arid Mountains, Iran

IntroductIon

Spiny mice of the genus Acomys (Geoffroy 1838) are small rock-dwelling rodents inhabiting Africa and the Middle East. Despite their earlier systematic placement, spiny mice are more related to gerbils than to true murids belonging to the subfamily Murinae, which are represented by rats and house mice. 52 species of Murinae subfamily have been recorded in Iran (Karami et al. 2008; Ziaie 2009). Acomys dimidiatus was described as Mus dimidiatus in 1826, by Cretzschmar, based on a specimen caught in the vicinity of Saint Catherine monastery in the Sinai Mountains by Rüppell (Cretzschmar 1826; Rosevear 1969). To the present day the Eastern spiny mouse (A. dimidiatus Cretzschmar, 1826) is located along the border of the Persian Gulf. Misonne (1959) stated that this species lives at the border of the Persian Gulf. Only three localities were listed in Kerman and Fars Provinces by Lay (1967). Records of this species distribution in Iran were also provided by Etemad (1978), Karami et al. (2008) and Ziaie (2009). Spiny

mice are social rodents living in family groups and aggressive interaction between family members may occur. A. dimidiatus (Fig. 1) is one the most abundant Murid species in Iran. Frynta et al. (2010) analysed 24 samples from Libya, Chad, Egypt, Jordan, Cyprus, Crete, Turkey, Yemen and Iran. Their results confirmed that the Afro-Mediterranean and Asian clades are clearly distinct. Despite that fact little is known about the current distribution and taxonomy of A. dimidiatus. There is no agreement among traditional taxonomists concerning relationships among populations or spe-cies of this genus (Wilson & Reeder 2005). Different aspects of the Eastern spiny mouse’s (Genus Acomys) systematics remain controversial particularly regard-ing species composition, their distribution limits, and phylogenetic affinities (Volobouev et al. 2007; Nováková et al. 2010). There is also a lot of misun-derstanding and misinformation in literature about this species living in Iran. The aim of this paper is to present new data on the distribution, taxonomy and ecology of the Eastern spiny mouse in Iran.

DOI: 10.2478/v10043-011-0028-9

245Distribution and Taxonomic Status of the Eastern Spiny Mouse in Iran

Figure 1. Recorded localities of the Eastern spiny mouse (▲): Sistan & Baluchestan (Chabahar), Fars province, Bushehr province and new recorded site (●), Geno and Minab in Hor-mozgan province, Jam and Khaeez in Bushehr province.

MaterIal and Methods

Morphological and morphometric analyses of 52 speci-mens representing three populations of A. dimidiatus from Jam and Khaeez in Bushehr Province; Minab and Geno Biosphere Reserve in Hormozgan Province (Fig. 2) were carried out in the summer of 2003 and 2005. To collect specimens we used live Sherman traps and cage traps locally. For morphometric characters, the following 15 cranial and skull traits were measured (Javidkar et al. 2007): OCCL, occipitonasal length; CBL, condylobasal length; ZW, zygomatic width; IW, interorbital width; CW, cranial width; NL, nasal length; DL, diastema length; APFL, anterior plate fissure length; TBL, tympanic bulla length; TBW, tympanic bulla width; UChL, upper cheekteeth length; LChL, lower cheekteeth length; SH, skull height; WR, width of ros-trum and ML, mandible length. Cranial measurements were taken using callipers accurate to the nearest 0.05 mm, while four external measurements with callipers accurate to the nearest 1 mm (HBL, head and body length; TL, tail length; FL, foot length; EL, ear length). Each individual was sexed and weighed to the nearest 1 g. Some ecological characteristics such as habitat, feeding habits, breeding of the species were recorded. We used analysis of variance (ANOVA) to determine significant mean differences among the populations. For each variable, normality and homogeneity of variance were tested. The Tukey multivariate test and Principal component analysis (PCA) were performed using SPSS.

We log-transformed dental values to avoid problems associated with the application of multivariate methods to matrices containing ratios.

Figure 2. Eastern spiny mouse from new recorded localities, Geno in Hormozgan Province.

results

A. dimidiatus was found to live at altitudes between 50 and 1500 m in the low Arid mountains of Bushehr and Hormozgan Provinces. Other rodents sympatric with A. dimidiatus include Meriones persicus and Mus mus-culus.We noticed that the main plant cover in its habitat includes Ebenus stellata, Pistacia atlantic, Dodonea viscose, Convolvulus sp., Acacia ehrenbergiana, Eu-phorbia larica, Rheum ribess and Ziziphus spina-christi. This rodent showed a broad spectrum of utilization of everything in its diet. From direct observation we con-cluded that A. dimidiatus fed on wheat and green parts of various plants and drink water. In captivity, when fed only on seed, A. dimidiatus also was also provided with water. In general, different types of plant- and animal-based food were found in stomach contents of A. dimi-diatus. Two pregnant females collected at the beginning of January and April produced 2 offspring in captivity. At birth senses of the young were acute, their body was covered with short hair. Standard descriptive statistical data including the mean and standard deviation for 20 cranial and external measurements of A. dimidiatus are presented in Table 1. According to ANOVA results, no significant differences between male and female specimens were revealed (Table 4). As a result, data relevant to subsequent analysis were pooled. The prin-cipal component analysis of all A. dimidiatus specimens was performed. A significant share of variability (70%) of the pooled sample occurred along the first, second and third axes (Table 2). As the resolution of variables on the first and second axes was low, the second and

246Ghadirian T., Mohammadi S., Ashrafzadeh M. R., Najafabadi M. S., Shahi T., Hamidi A. H. Kh.

third axes were used to interpret PCA results. UchL and LchL and the inverse CW and APFL were related to the second axis. NL is highly correlated with axis 2 and APFL, LTBL, TBW, SH and WR measurements are directly associated with the third axis. Results showed that aggregated samples from Jam and Khaeez were directly correlated with the second axis (Fig. 3) which, according to Figure 2, showed the affinity of samples of A. dimidiatus collected from those areas due to their similarity in SH and APFL. We collected samples of

this species in Bushehr from hills surrounding the vil-lage of Gashi and in the vicinity of the Gharbeh Jam village. Grouped as a class, samples from the Minab area correlated with UchL, TBW, SH and WR directly (Fig. 3). In Minab, samples were collected in areas such as Shekargah, Palamy Mount, Konarju and Poom. Sam-ples from Geno were scattered along the third axis and showed inverse correlation with the second axis. Part of them were close to Minab samples, but others were separated, due to their negative correlation with OCCL,

Table 1. Skull and external measurements of A. dimidiatus populations (mean ± SD).

VariableGeno Jam Khaeez Minab

Mean SE Mean SE Mean SE Mean SEOCCL (mm) 29.56 1.33 29.35 0.07 29.83 0.85 31.28 1.09CBL (mm) 27.50 1.21 26.00 0.14 26.87 0.82 28.43 0.90ZW (mm) 14.07 0.61 13.90 0.14 13.93 0.32 14.62 0.35IW (mm) 4.74 0.18 4.35 0.21 4.50 0.26 4.92 0.31CW (mm) 11.34 0.43 12.65 0.35 12.70 0.26 11.91 0.65NL (mm) 13.31 0.14 11.35 0.21 11.46 0.68 12.70 0.54DL (mm) 7.59 0.51 7.75 0.21 8.10 0.2 8.05 0.38APFL (mm) 6.66 0.41 6.80 0.00 7.26 0.15 6.78 0.23TBL (mm) 5.16 0.44 5.05 0.07 5.10 0.34 6.74 0.78TBW (mm) 4.24 0.41 3.40 0.28 3.70 0.2 4.64 0.33UChL (mm) 4.62 0.12 4.45 0.07 4.33 0.23 4.77 0.13LChL (mm) 4.28 0.10 4.05 0.07 3.86 0.2 4.63 0.23SH (mm) 9.10 0.37 9.50 0.14 9.33 0.05 10.43 0.43WR (mm) 3.25 0.20 3.15 0.07 3.13 0.15 4.08 0.25ML (mm) 15.25 0.67 14.65 0.07 15.16 0.32 16.37 0.92HBL (mm) 105.31 3.62 87.25 3.88 98.33 6.95 91.85 –TL (mm) 115.05 1.47 103.95 10.39 106.60 12.11 116.33 –FL (mm) 18.55 0.28 17.75 0.21 18.80 0.7 19.28 –EL (mm) 20.35 0.23 15.30 0.42 18.20 0.85 18.57 –W (g) 44.69 6.52 32.50 4.94 35.66 4.5 26.92 –

Table 2. Factor structure in Principal component analysis.

Variables F1 F2 F3OCCL 0.91474 0.1143 -0.1891CBL 0.8778 0.10113 -0.2570ZW 0.90472 0.066047 -0.2468IW 0.74167 -0.44617 -0.1571CW 0.39976 0.882421 0.1181NL 0.10532 -0.83259 -0.4480APFL 0.624 0.54453 -0.4225TBW 0.73435 -0.10836 0.4707TBL 0.38702 -0.37261 0.4805UChl 0.60543 -0.55833 0.1291LChl 0.37187 -0.73746 -0.0644SH 0.76581 0.22866 0.4932WR 0.75167 -0.04707 0.4519ML 0.90867 0.062857 -0.0192Eigenvalue 7.3 3.1 1.62Cumulative proportion of explained variance

49 70 80

247Distribution and Taxonomic Status of the Eastern Spiny Mouse in Iran

Table 3. Results of Tukey tests with 95% confidence for morphometric factors from the three populations of A.dimidiatus from Bushehr, Geno and Minab. p-values from Bonferonni univariate test among Eastern spiny mouse populations: *= p < 0.05, ** = p < 0.01, ns = p > 0.05.

Measure Bushehr Geno Minab FML 14.9 ns 15.3 ns 16.2* 6.1WR 3.14 ns 3.26 ns 4.08* 50.43SH 9.42 ns 9.08 ns 10.43* 44.55LChL 3.94 ns 4.29* 4.36* 18.19UChL 2.29* 2.36** 2.41* 14.99TBW 5.58* 4.03* 4.64** 11.82TBL 5.08* 5.24 ns 6.74 ns 29.88APFL 7.08** 6.76 ns 6.78 ns 1.81DL 7.96* 7.79 ns 8.05 ns 1NL 11.42* 13.32** 12.70* 131.6CW 12.68* 11.38* 11.01* 30.98IW 4.44** 4.78* 4.92* 10.32ZW 13.92* 14.20** 14.26* 2.81CBL 26.52* 27.72* 28.35* 4.74OCCL 29.64** 30.02* 31.28* 3.54

Table 4. Averages (mm) ± SD of skull measurements and dental variables in A. dimidiatus populations from Bushehr, Geno and Minab. Based on ANOVA, sexes do not differ (ns = p > 0.05).

Measure Male Female F, p Sex unknownML 15.25 ± 0.67 15.40 ± 0.66 0.98, ns 15.67 ± 0.097WR 3.26 ± 0.20 3.25 ± 0.18 1.37, ns 3.65 ± 0.52SH 9.1 ± 0.37 9.07 ± 0.32 2.44, ns 9.97 ± 0.60LChL 4.30 ± 0.10 4.28 ± 0.10 2.56, ns 4.17 ± 0.30UChL 4.62 ± 0.12 4.60 ± 0.084 0.12, ns 4.59 ± 0.25TBW 4.24 ± 0.41 3.95 ± 0.34 2.22, ns 4.16 ± 0.62LTB 5.16 ± 0.44 5.27 ± 0.39 1.12, ns 5.98 ± 1.04APFL 6.66 ± 0.41 6.68 ± 0.34 1.47, ns 6.91 ± 0.28DL 7.59 ± 0.51 7.87 ± 0.46 2.66, ns 8 ± 0.32NL 13.31 ± 0.14 13.33 ± 0.17 0.55, ns 12.12 ± 0.81CW 11.34 ± 0.43 11.39 ± 0.17 2.05, ns 12.26 ± 0.59IW 4.74 ± 0.18 4.80 ± 0.13 1.02, ns 4.70 ± 0.36ZW 14.07 ± 0.61 14.25 ± 0.51 0.64, ns 14.30 ± 0.45CBL 27.5±1.26 27.8±0.95 0.50, ns 27.52±0.00OCCL 29.56 ± 1.39 30.21 ± 1.11 2.03, ns 30.53 ± 1.23

CBL, ZW and ML. Samples from Minab that correlated with OCCL, CBL, ZW and ML directly were grouped as a class. In Geno this species was collected in rocky habitats and valleys, the lowest sampling height being above 1500 m. In some cases damaged samples (no tail and ears) were captured. The PCA analysis showed a clear divergence of four populations (Fig. 3). The ANOVA analysis showed that there were no significant differences in all measurements of specimens among Bushehr, Geno and Minab sampling locations (p < 0.05), with the exception of DL and APFL (Table 3). Tukey test results indicated that as a whole samples obtained from Bushehr and Geno, did not differ significantly in ML, WR, SH and TBL. However, they differed significantly from samples collected in Minab (p > 0.05). Specimens

captured in Geno and Minab did not differ in IW and LChL (p > 0.05) significantly either, but their difference from Bushehr samples was significant (P<0.05). The current study showed significant differences in other characteristics of samples obtained from each of these three regions (p < 0.05) (Table 3).

dIscussIon

Information on the taxonomy of spiny mice is scanty. Dedicated studies of species belonging to this genus and morphological characteristics of cranium as well as morphometric studies are required for species identifica-tion. Differences among populations and presumptive

248Ghadirian T., Mohammadi S., Ashrafzadeh M. R., Najafabadi M. S., Shahi T., Hamidi A. H. Kh.

factors behind them, such as climate and geographi-cal features including area, elevation, distance from the islands of dry land, as well as diversity of animal species and competition between species have been discussed (Melton 1982). Recently, Volobouev et al. (2007) formally elevated dimidiatus to the rank of species and reviewed karyological, morphological and biogeographical evidence suggesting clear differences between A. cahirinus from Africa (including Egypt) and A. dimidiatus from the Asian part of the range includ-ing Sinai. Populations of Jam and Khaeez seem to be isolated from other areas and limited to areas that in terms of habitat are broader. Samples from the Minab area were identified as having dense and tough thorns. They were collected in all seasons, but only in rock areas or steppe with scattered vegetation. The comparison of mice samples from Minab with Bushehr and Geno samples which were identical in almost all measured characters showed that A. dimidiatus from Minab were larger. Mice from Bushehr were smaller in size, except for APFL and CW. Although vegetation in some habi-tats was good, we failed to catch species that may be related to the presence of small mammal predators in this habitat. The mammalian fauna of Iran, particularly that of non-volant small mammals, is poorly studied (Mor-shed & Patton 2002). Documentation of the mammalian fauna of Iran is important for creating the database of information about mammalian diversity in the southern part of the country. This information supports the argu-ment for establishing conservation areas in the face of strong developmental pressures (Darvish et al. 2006). No scientific studies and conservation projects aimed at the determination of the current status, distribution,

etc. of A. dimidiatus were carried out in Iran. At the same time, there are numerous gaps in the knowledge on A. dimidiatus distribution in its range.

acknowledgeMents

Dr Adwan H Shehab has read the early draft version of the article and made helpful comments. The manuscript was much improved by two anonymous referees.

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Pc3

TBW TBLWR SH

CWPc2

ML

APFLDL

BCLZWOCCL

NL

LChL

UChL

IW

Pc3

Pc2

3.9-3.6 6.7

-2

11-1

-1

Figure 3. Ordination of 15 cranial and dental measurements of A. dimidiatus from the PC2–PC3 plane. The second and third axes of PCA. Location of studied populations: white dots – Geno, closed squares – Khaeez, closed triangles – Jam, closed circle – Minab.

249Distribution and Taxonomic Status of the Eastern Spiny Mouse in Iran

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Acomys dimidiAtus (rodentIa: MurIdae) Irane

T. Ghadirian, S. Mohammadi, M. R. Ashrafzadeh, M. Sh. Najafabadi, T. Shahi, A. H. Kh. Hamidi

santrauka

Pirmą kartą 52 Acomys dimidiatus individų ėminys surinktas Irane, Bushehr Provincijoje, Minab ir Geno Biosferos Rezervate Hormozgan Provincijoje 2003 ir 2005 metų vasarą. ANOVA rezultatai parodė, kad visi šių graužikų iš įvairių vietovių morfometriniai matme-nys patikimai skyrėsi, išskyrus diastemos ilgį ir prieša-kinę gomurio angą. PCA analizė parodė, kad pavyzdžiai iš Khaeez ir Jam (Boushehr) priklausė skirtingoms grupėms. Šie pavyzdžiai buvo vienodi pagal kaukolės plotį. Pavyzdžiai iš Minab vietovės buvo panašūs pagal okcipitonazalinį, kondilobazalinį, skruostikaulių ir apa-tinio žandikaulio ilgius. Kaukolės matmenų palyginimas parodė, kad okcipitonazalinio ir kondilobazalinio ilgio skirtumas svarbus skirtumų tarp populiacijų nustatymui. Mūsų rezultatai rodo, kad šie morfometriniai požymiai yra geri skirtumų tarp ėminių iš įvairių tyrimo vietų indikatoriai. Taip pat buvo nustatyta, kad A. dimidiatus minta augaliniu ir gyvūniniu maistu.

Received: 1 August 2011Accepted: 23 September 2011

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