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1 April 2013 Age-Related Morphometrics and Sex Ratios in the Eastern Mole (Scalopus aquaticus)
George A. Feldhamer, Jill C. Devine, Sara M. Ressing
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Abstract

We took nine skull measurements, three body measurements, and body mass on 240 eastern moles (Scalopus aquaticus) to determine age and sex-related morphologic variation. We estimated age of specimens as juveniles (<1 y old) or adults 1 to 4 y old based on wear of the last upper molar. Mean values for all skull and body measurements were significantly larger for males than females. There were significant age-related differences in body mass, total length, and width across the upper canines. Adult sex ratios differed seasonally, although not during the breeding season as expected; the sex ratio of 74 juveniles was 1∶1. We also investigated the correlation between age estimation based on wear of M3 vs. degree of ossification of maxillary bone over the buccal roots of the cheek teeth used in previous studies. We found little relationship between the two age estimation methods, with buccal ossification less precise than molar wear.

2013, American Midland Naturalist
George A. Feldhamer, Jill C. Devine, and Sara M. Ressing "Age-Related Morphometrics and Sex Ratios in the Eastern Mole (Scalopus aquaticus)," The American Midland Naturalist 169(2), 409-415, (1 April 2013). https://doi.org/10.1674/0003-0031-169.2.409
Received: 5 May 2011; Accepted: 1 June 2012; Published: 1 April 2013
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