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The ontogeny and distribution of countershading in colonies of the naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 February 2001

Stanton Braude ,
Deborah Ciszek ,
Nancy E. Berg  and
Nancy Shefferly
Stanton Braude
Affiliation:
International Center for Tropical Ecology at UMSL and Washington University, St Louis, MO 63130, U.S.A.
Deborah Ciszek
Affiliation:
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1079, U.S.A.
Nancy E. Berg
Affiliation:
Washington University, St Louis, MO 63130, U.S.A.
Nancy Shefferly
Affiliation:
Oakland Community College, Farmington Hills, MI 48334, U.S.A.
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Abstract

Most naked mole-rats Heterocephalus glaber are countershaded, with purple-grey dorsal but pale pink ventral skin. The exceptions to this coloration pattern are uniformly pink, and include newborn pups, most queens and breeding males, and very old animals. Countershading begins to appear at 2–3 weeks of age and begins to disappear at c. 7 years of age. Countershading may provide camouflage when young naked mole-rats are above ground attempting to disperse. Therefore, reproductives and older workers may lose this coloration once they are unlikely to leave the burrow. Alternative hypotheses for pigmentation that we considered include: thermoregulation, and protection from abrasion or from damaging ultraviolet radiation. These hypotheses are not necessarily mutually exclusive, but do lead to different predictions regarding the development of pigmentation and which colony members should be countershaded.

Keywords

Heterocephalus glabernaked mole-ratcountershadingadaptive coloration
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Zoology , Volume 253 , Issue 3 , March 2001 , pp. 351 - 357
Copyright
© 2001 The Zoological Society of London

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