Rodent Societies: An Ecological & Evolutionary Perspective

of rock-specialist rodents (rodents that are confined to liv-

ing in crevices within rocks). The study carried out by

Mares and Lacher (1987) was less inclusive than this study,

because it did not assess the degree of social behavior in

smaller-bodied rock-dwelling rodents, yet it was more in-

clusive than the current study because it discussed the social

behavior of mammals other than rodents. The first part of

this chapter will discuss rocky habitat —how many rodents

utilize rocky substrate, and potential benefits they may gain

from doing so. The second part of the chapter will delin-

eate the types of social behavior observed in obligate rock-

specialists and how various hypotheses for group living may

explain observed levels of social affiliation.

How Many Rodents Utilize Rocky Habitat?

A vast number of rodents utilize rocky substrate. Accord-

ing to the rodent generic accounts in Nowak (1991), at least

114 genera of rodents (over one-fourth of all rodent gen-

era!) from eighteen different families (over one-half of all

rodent families!) contain at least one species that uses rocks

Socioecology of Rock-Dwelling Rodents 417

Table 35.1 Sociobiology of obligate rock-specialists and additional rock-dwelling mammals discussed in Mares and Lacher (1987)

Family Species Common name Distribution Social structure

Sciuridae Tamias dorsalis Cliff chipmunk Western U.S. south into Mexico Dens solitarily?; Forages communally
Sciuridae Eupetaurus cinereus Woolly flying squirrel Northern Pakistan Solitary
Muridae Alticola strelzovi Flat-headed vole Asia Family groups
Muridae Chionomys nivalis Snow vole SW Europe to Iran Females do not have overlapping
home ranges
Muridae Acomys russatus Golden spiny mouse Eastern Egypt through Sinai Females have overlapping home
peninsula to Arabian peninsula ranges; Social
Muridae Aethomys namaquensis Namaqua rock rat Southern Africa Females do not have overlapping home
ranges; Family groups
Muridae Zyzomys palatalis Carpentarian rock-rat Gulf of Carpentaria region of Females have overlapping home ranges
Australia
Muridae Neotoma cinerea Bushy-tailed woodrat Western North America Loose social groups
Muridae Neotoma magister Allegheny woodrat Eastern U.S. Colonial
Caviidae Kerodon rupestris Rock cavy NE Brazil Multiple females per male
Chinchillidae Chinchilla laniger Chilean chinchilla North-central Chile Colonial; Multi-family groups
Chinchillidae Lagidium peruanum Mountain viscacha Western South America Colonial; Family groups
Capromyidae Geocapromys brownii Jamaican hutia Jamaica Family groups
Capromyidae Geocapromys ingrahami Bahaman hutia Bahamas Family groups
Abrocomidae Abrocoma cinerea Chinchilla rats West-central Colonial
species complex South America
Petromuridae Petromus typicus Dassie rat Angola, Namibia, South Africa Social
Ctenodactylidae Ctenodactylus gundi Common gundi Morocco to Libya Family groups; multiple females per
male; multifamily groups; cooperative
breeding units
Ctenodactylidae Ctenodactylus vali Val’s gundi Algeria and Libya Family groups
Ctenodactylidae Felovia vae Felou gundi Mali Family groups
Ctenodactylidae Massoutiera mzabi Mzab gundi Algeria, Niger, Chad Family groups
Ctenodactylidae Pectinator spekei Speke’s gundi Ethiopia, Eritrea, Somalia, Djibouti Extended family groups

Additional mammals studied by Mares and Lacher (1987)

Sciuridae Marmota flaviventris Yellow-bellied marmot Western U.S. and southern Canada Multiple females per male
Sciuridae Marmota caligata Hoary marmot Alaska to Washington and Montana Multiple females per male
Sciuridae Marmota olympus Olympic marmot Olympic peninsula of western Multiple females per male
Washington
Hyracoidea: Procaviidae Procavia johnstoni Rock hyrax Africa, Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Multiple females per male
(P. capensis) Lebanon, Syria
Hyracoidea: Procaviidae Heterohyrax brucei Bush hyrax SE Egypt to Angola and NE South Multiple females per male
Africa
Lagomorpha: Ochotonidae Ochotona princeps American pika Western North America Solitary

Sources:Pearson (1948); Howe and Clough (1971); Clough (1972); George (1974); Howe (1974); Rowlands (1974); George (1978); Frase and Hoffmann (1980); George (1981); George and
Crowther (1981); Lacher (1981); Hoeck (1982); Olds and Shoshani (1982); Anderson et al. (1983); Mares and Lacher (1987); Gouat (1988a); Rice (1988); Smith and Weston (1990); Nowak
(1991); Hart (1992); Moses and Millar (1992); Kronfeld et al. (1994); Braun and Mares (1996); Churchill (1996); Zahler (1996); Smith (1997); Nadachowski and Mead (1999b); Shargal et al.
(2000); Castleberry et al. (2001); Braun and Mares (2002); Nutt (2003); Fleming and Nicolson (2004); Luque-Larena et al. (2004); Puckey et al. (2004); Spotorno et al. (2004); Nutt (2005).

• Denotes species whose social structure is also described in Mares and Lacher (1987).