Of city and village mice: behavioural adjustments of striped field mice to urban environments.

ABSTRACT: A fundamental question of current ecological research concerns the drives and limits of species responses to human-induced rapid environmental change (HIREC). Behavioural responses to HIREC are a key component because behaviour links individual responses to population and community changes. Ongoing fast urbanization provides an ideal setting to test the functional role of behaviour for responses to HIREC. Consistent behavioural differences between conspecifics (animal personality) may be important determinants or constraints of animals' adaptation to urban habitats. We tested whether urban and rural populations of small mammals differ in mean trait expression, flexibility and repeatability of behaviours associated to risk-taking and exploratory tendencies. Using a standardized behavioural

SUBMITTER: Dammhahn M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7400609 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature