Reading 6 Flashcards
What did this study find about paternal hamsters?
hye mechanically assist the delivery, consume amniotic fluid and placenta, remove fetal membranes, and provide parental care during the birthing process.
What was this report the first description of?
a male mammal behaviorually participating in the birth of his young
What type of hamster is this? Are they naturally biparental? How are they different form other type of hamsters?
Djungairan hamsters phodopus campbelli are naturally bi parental and males contribute to pup survival and growth through direct paternal care and indirect effects on maternal physiology
Males of the closely related Siberian hamster p. songorus, have only seasonal opportunities to interact with their pups and neither contribute to pup survival and growth or provide extensive partenal care under lab conditions
Why do the researchers think the Djungarian hamster display this biparental care?
the males undergo a series of hormonal changes before the birth of their first litter which is unique to their species. Researchers think this may prime them to express paternal behaviour.
What was the hypothesis of this study?
that these males would behave paternally on first contact with the pups during the birthing process whereas the P songorus males would not.
What did the male campbelli do to assist the birth? Where these behaviours observed in P sangorus?
licked amniotic fluid before the birth, mechanically assisted the delivery, opened an airway by clearing nostrils (so the pups flushed red with oxygenation), licked and sniffed pups in the moments after birth to clean them of membranes, and ate the placenta.
no.
What do the researchers anticipate?
That p campbelli will not be the ony species with highly develoepd paternal behaviour repetoires during birth
