Abstract

We studied daily activity patterns of the subterranean rodent Spalacopus cyanus, in the field during summer and winter, and under laboratory conditions at two different temperatures, 15°C and 30°C. This rodent exhibited nocturnal activity in the laboratory, but diurnal aboveground activity in the field. We suggest that this discrepancy between field and laboratory results is a consequence of differential space-use inside burrows during the day, and that low external ambient temperatures appear to constrain activity of S. cyanus outside their burrows during the night in summer and winter. In contrast, we hypothesize that high summer temperatures constrain above-ground activity at midday. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.