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Communal burrow refers to the habitat built by some species of mammals as a community habitat. there are some species that build burrows, but not communal burrows; and there are some species that live in groups, but do not construct burrows or any other type of habitat.

Overview

Specific species

Common degus

Common degus are highly social. They live in burrows, and, by digging communally, they are able to construct larger and more elaborate burrows than they could on their own. Degus digging together coordinate their activities, forming digging chains. Females living in the same group have been shown to spontaneously nest communally; they nurse one another's young. They spend a large amount of time on the surface, where they forage for food. When foraging, their ability to detect predators is increased in larger groups, and each animal needs to spend less time in vigilance.

Common degus exhibit a wide array of communication techniques. They have an elaborate vocal repertoire comprising up to 15 different sounds, and the young need to be able to hear their mother's calls if the emotional systems in their brains are to develop properly. They use their urine to scent mark, and experiments have shown that they react to one another's marks, although in males the hormone testosterone may suppress their sense of smell somewhat.

Common degus are seasonal breeders; the breeding season for wild degus begins in the Chilean autumn when day and night are roughly equal, with pups born in early to mid-spring.

Common degu pups are born relatively precocial, fully furred and with eyes open, and their auditory and visual systems are functional at birth. Unlike most other rodents, male common degus also take part in protecting and raising their pups until they are old enough to leave the family.

Plains viscacha

Plains viscacha live in communal burrow systems in groups containing one or more males, several females, and immatures. Viscachas forage in groups at night and aggregate underground during the day. All members of a group use burrows throughout the communal burrow system and participate in digging at the burrows. Alarm calls are given primarily by adult males. The long-term social unit of the plains viscacha is the female group. Resident males disappear each year and new males join groups of females. Viscachas live in colonies that range from a few individuals to hundreds. To keep up with the colony chatter, they have acquired an impressive repertoire of vocalizations that are used in social interactions. Dominance is absent among females. Members of a social group share a common foraging area around the communal burrow system, and feed on a variety of grasses and forbs, occasionally browsing on low shrubs. They collect branches and heavy objects to cover the burrow entrance. When they live close to human settlements, tend to hoard brooms, tables, garden tools, firewood, trinkets, pieces of concrete, and many human-made objects to cover the burrow.

Daurian pikas

Daurian pikas have been observed sharing burrows with several other mammal species. They occasionally “visit” burrows of Altai marmots and Mongolian pikas. In turn, their burrows are visited by ground squirrels, and sometimes by burrowing birds. Due to low competition and predation rates, the limiting factor on Daurian pika populations is winter.

See also

• Habitat
• Community
• Social animals

References

1. Ebensperger, L. A.; Bozinovic, F. (2000), "Communal burrowing in the hystricognath rodent, Octodon degus: A benefit of sociality?", Behavioural and Ecological Sociobiology, 47 (5): 365–369, doi:10.1007/s002650050678, hdl:10533/172245, ISSN 0340-5443, S2CID 12859012
2. ^ Ebensperger, L. A.; Bozinovic, F. (2000b), "Energetics and burrowing behaviour in the semifossorial degu Octodon degus (Rodentia: Octodontidae)", Journal of Zoology, 252 (2): 179–186, doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.2000.tb00613.x, hdl:10533/172199
3. Ebensperger, L.A.; Veloso, C.; Wallem, P. (2002), "Do female degus communally nest and nurse their pups?", Journal of Ethology, 20 (2): 143–146, doi:10.1007/s10164-002-0063-x, ISSN 0289-0771, S2CID 38854503
4. Ebensperger, L.A.; Hurtado, M.; Lacey, E.; Chang, A.; Chang, AT (2004), "Communal nesting and kinship in degus (Octodon degus)", Naturwissenschaften, 91 (8): 391–395, Bibcode:2004NW.....91..391E, doi:10.1007/s00114-004-0545-5, hdl:10533/175502, ISSN 0028-1042, PMID 15309311, S2CID 929721
5. Quirici, V.; Castro, R.A.; Oyarzun, J.; Ebensperger, L.A. (2008), "Female degus (Octodon degus) monitor their environment while foraging socially", Anim Cogn, 11 (3): 441–448, doi:10.1007/s10071-007-0134-z, ISSN 1435-9448, PMID 18214556, S2CID 17723026
6. Long, C.V. (2007), "Vocalisations of the degu (Octodon degus), a social caviomorph rodent", Bioacoustics, 16 (3): 223–244, doi:10.1080/09524622.2007.9753579, ISSN 0952-4622, S2CID 84569309
7. Ziabreva, I.; Schnabel, R.; Poeggel, G.; Braun, K. (2003), "Mother's voice "buffers" separation-induced receptor changes in the prefrontal cortex of Octodon degus", Neuroscience, 119 (2): 433–441, doi:10.1016/S0306-4522(03)00123-4, PMID 12770557, S2CID 28635328
8. Kleiman, D.G. (1974), "Patterns of behaviour in hystricomorph rodents", in Rowlands, I. W.; Weir, B. J. (eds.), The Biology of Hystricomorph Rodents, London: Academic Press
9. Fischer, R.; Meunier, G. (1985), "Responses to conspecifics' urine by the degu Octodon degus", Physiological Behaviour, 34 (6): 999–1001, doi:10.1016/0031-9384(85)90027-7, PMID 4059390, S2CID 27846946
10. Jechura, T.; Walsh, J.; Lee, T. (2003), "Testosterone suppresses circadian responsiveness to social cues in the diurnal rodent Octodon degus", Journal of Biological Rhythms, 18 (1): 43–50, doi:10.1177/0748730402239675, PMID 12568243, S2CID 40262270
11. Ebensperger, L.A.; Caiozzi, A. (2002), "Male degus, Octodon degus, modify their dustbathing behaviour in response to social familiarity of previous dustbathing marks", Revista Chilena de Historia Natural, 75: 157–163, doi:10.4067/S0716-078X2002000100015, ISSN 0716-078X
12. Bozinovic, F.; Bacigalupe, L.; Vasquez, R.; Visser, H.; Veloso, C.; Kenagy, G. (2004), "Cost of living in free-ranging degus (Octodon degus): Seasonal dynamics of energy expenditure", Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology A, 137 (3): 597–604, doi:10.1016/j.cbpb.2003.11.014, PMID 15123196
13. Reynolds, T.; Wright, J. (1979), "Early postnatal physical and behavioural development of degus (Octodon degus)", Lab Animal, 13 (2): 93–9, doi:10.1258/002367779780943576, PMID 480906, S2CID 22769488
14. "Breeding Degus". Exoticnutrition.com. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
15. http://www.conservacionpatagonica.org/blog/2011/06/29/species-profile-mountain-vizcacha/
16. Branch L. 1993. Social organization and mating system of the plains vizcacha (Lagostomus maximus). J Zool (Lond). 229:473–491
17. Giulietti J, Jackson J. 1986. Composición anual de la dieta de la vizcacha (Lagostomus maximus) en pastizales naturales en la provincia de San Luís, Argentina. Rev Argent Prod Anim. 6:229–237.
18. Eshelkin, I, and S.M. Purtov. "Mobility and contact between animals in the Gorno-Altai natural plague nidus." The Soviet journal of ecology Nov/Dec.7 (1976): 556-558. Print.

• Habitats