Assessment of Developmental Stability during Population Dynamics of the Korean Field Mouse (Apodemus peninsulae) in Mongolia

Abstract

The development stability has been assessed (by the magnitude of the fluctuating asymmetry of craniological traits) with the change in the number of the Korean field mouse Apodemus peninsulae in Mongolia. It has been shown that an increase in the abundance of this species is not accompanied by a violation of developmental stability, but occurs against the background of a high abundance of other species (the gray red-backed vole Clethrionomys rufocanus and the reed vole Microtus fortis). The result obtained testifies to the assumption that not only the population size of the studied species itself, but also the increase in the number of other species of the community can play a role in manifestation of the overcrowding effect, which can lead to a change in the state of individuals recorded in this case by reduce the developmental stability.