Effects of Environmental Variables on Some Physiological Responses of Microtus montanus under Natural Conditions

Abstract

Cyclic fluctuations in the population density of microtine rodents have been known since antiquity. However, factors responsible for this phenomenon are not known. The objectives of this long term study are essentially threefold. First, to characterize those environmental variables that might affect Microtus montanus in different seasons of the year. Second, to record the growth, maturation and reproductive activity of the voles under natural conditions. Third, to determine the maturational, as well as the seasonal pelage changes of these rodents. The data resulting from the execution of the above objectives would be correlated in an attempt to determine the causes underlying the multi-annual fluctuations in the population density of these microtine rodents in Grand Teton National Park.