Life History Correlates of Fitness in Cynomys ludovicianus

生物学家一直认为，个人避免极端 近亲繁殖，以减少产生 通过近亲繁殖衰退而产生的基因低劣的后代。 对这一论点的支持是罕见的，因为只有对人类和 某些植物是否有明确的证据表明， 避免极端近亲繁殖， 近交衰退 黑尾土拨鼠生活在 南达科他州的自然条件避免了极端的近亲繁殖， 四种不同的机制，但初步证据， 近交窝表明没有近交衰退。 进一步调查明显缺乏近亲繁殖的研究 提出了野生草原土拨鼠的抑郁症。 把杀婴列为 以及社区护理几乎同时被观察到， 在这个物种。 类似的社区护理已被观察到， 只有少数哺乳动物物种，以前从未在啮齿动物中发现过 生活在自然条件下。 研究进一步调查 从企图自杀到社区护理的转变， 土拨鼠被提议。

Biologists have long argued that individuals avoid extreme inbreeding in order to reduce the probability of producing genetically inferior offspring through inbreeding depression. Support for this argument is scarce, since only for humans and certain plants is there unequivocal evidence from the same species for both the avoidance of extreme inbreeding and inbreeding depression. Black-tailed prairie dogs living under natural conditions in South Dakota avoid extreme inbreeding by four different mechanisms, but preliminary evidence from 19 inbred litters indicates that there is no inbreeding depression. Research to further investigate the apparent lack of inbreeding depression among wild prairie dogs is proposed. Infanticide as well as communal nursing has been observed nearly simultaneously in this species. Similar communal nursing has been observed in only a handful of mammalian species, and never before in a rodent living under natural conditions. Research to further investigate the shift from attempted infanticide to communal nursing in prairie dogs is proposed.