The Play of the Turuchan Pika (Ochotonaturuchanensis Naumov 1934, Ochotonidae, Lagomorpha) in the Wild

For the first time, all three types of play (locomotor, object, and social) have been recorded and described for wild representatives of the family Ochotonidae of the order Lagomorpha. Observations have been carried out at a separate settlement of pikas in the Irkutsk district of Irkutsk oblast (Rus...

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Published inBiology bulletin of the Russian Academy of Sciences Vol. 50; no. 9; pp. 2465 - 2470
Main Authors Popov, S. V., Ilchenko, O. G., Borisova, N. G., Lenkhoboeva, S. Yu, Starkov, A. I.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Moscow Pleiades Publishing 01.12.2023
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects
Biochemistry
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Cell Biology
Ecology
Lagomorpha
Life Sciences
Ochotonidae
Zoology
lagomorphs
social play
criteria of play
object play
locomotor play
animal play
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Summary:For the first time, all three types of play (locomotor, object, and social) have been recorded and described for wild representatives of the family Ochotonidae of the order Lagomorpha. Observations have been carried out at a separate settlement of pikas in the Irkutsk district of Irkutsk oblast (Russia). A total of 15 episodes of play were recorded for seven of the 14 animals observed, including ones of different sex and age. Eight episodes have been filmed and subjected to frame-by-frame analysis. We consider the recorded pika behavior to be play because it meets Burghardt’s criteria for play. The play of pikas includes elements (jumping, spinning, and falling on the back) that are easily associated with a temporary loss of control over the body.
ISSN:1062-3590
1608-3059
DOI:10.1134/S1062359023090297