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Water and salt balance in a south american Marsupial, the Gray Four-eyed Opossum (Philander Opossum)

Water and salt balance in a south american Marsupial, the Gray Four-eyed Opossum (Philander Opossum) INTRODUCTION Water is an essential resource. Its maintenance is assured by drinking, food habits, kidney physiology, habitat choice and behaviour (Schmidt-Nielsen 1964). Understanding an organism in terms of its water balance is a complex task possible only through comparative ecological and physiological approaches. Information is abundant on the water and salt balance of Australian marsupials under both laboratory and field conditions (Kinnear et al. 1968, Reid and McDonald 1968, Dawson 1969, Dawson and Denny 1969, Barker 1971, Purohit 1971, Hulbert and Dawson 1974, Morton 1980, Bakker et al. 1982). However, studies of American marsupials are scarce (Plakke and Pfeiffer 1965, 1970) and in South America, where the majority of species are found, nonexistent (McNab 1982). Philander opossum Brisson, 1762 (Poliprotodontia, Didelphidae), the gray four-eyed opossum, is a medium-sized opossum whose geographic range extends from Central America south to the Atlantic forest of coastal Brazil. Within its wide distribution P. opossum occurs characteristically in regions with an average annual rainfall greater than 1000 mm/year (Cerqueira, unpublished). Although it is omnivorous, it can be considered a predominately carnivorous species (Walker 1975, Charles-Dominique et al. 1981, Perisse et al. 1988). The restriction of P. opossum to mesic regions suggests a restricted http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Mammalia - International Journal of the Systematics, Biology and Ecology of Mammals de Gruyter

Water and salt balance in a south american Marsupial, the Gray Four-eyed Opossum (Philander Opossum)

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References (32)

Publisher
de Gruyter
Copyright
Copyright © 2009 Walter de Gruyter
ISSN
0025-1461
eISSN
1864-1547
DOI
10.1515/mamm.1991.55.3.421
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

INTRODUCTION Water is an essential resource. Its maintenance is assured by drinking, food habits, kidney physiology, habitat choice and behaviour (Schmidt-Nielsen 1964). Understanding an organism in terms of its water balance is a complex task possible only through comparative ecological and physiological approaches. Information is abundant on the water and salt balance of Australian marsupials under both laboratory and field conditions (Kinnear et al. 1968, Reid and McDonald 1968, Dawson 1969, Dawson and Denny 1969, Barker 1971, Purohit 1971, Hulbert and Dawson 1974, Morton 1980, Bakker et al. 1982). However, studies of American marsupials are scarce (Plakke and Pfeiffer 1965, 1970) and in South America, where the majority of species are found, nonexistent (McNab 1982). Philander opossum Brisson, 1762 (Poliprotodontia, Didelphidae), the gray four-eyed opossum, is a medium-sized opossum whose geographic range extends from Central America south to the Atlantic forest of coastal Brazil. Within its wide distribution P. opossum occurs characteristically in regions with an average annual rainfall greater than 1000 mm/year (Cerqueira, unpublished). Although it is omnivorous, it can be considered a predominately carnivorous species (Walker 1975, Charles-Dominique et al. 1981, Perisse et al. 1988). The restriction of P. opossum to mesic regions suggests a restricted

Journal

Mammalia - International Journal of the Systematics, Biology and Ecology of Mammalsde Gruyter

Published: Jan 1, 1991

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