Charismatic Microfauna: The Case of the Golden Mouse

Abstract

A book about elephants? Bonobos? Wolves? Sure, those are common fixtures on bookshelves, desks, and coffee tables. But a book about a mouse? And a little-known species of mouse at that? Interestingly, it works. In The Golden Mouse: Ecology and Conservation, Barrett and Feldhamer have compiled a set of chapters that give us a glimpse into the intriguing world of their study species, and provide a tempting set of questions for future exploration. The star of the show, the golden mouse (Ochrotomys nuttalli), has many characteristics that make for a compelling case study—it is the sole member of its genus, has a semiprehensile tail, possesses unusual nesting habits (primarily using arboreal, communal nests), is exceedingly docile and quite social, and although widely distributed across the southeastern United States, exists in clusters with very low population density. The editors use a levels-of-organization approach in the first half of the book to bring together disparate pieces of information, including presentation of valuable information on the population, community, ecosystem, and landscape ecology of this species. This flow of information logically builds from chapter to chapter, and provides the background information for the integration of later chapters, which are more specific to particular issues, such as the energetics, host/parasite relationships, and nesting habits of the golden mouse. Across all chapters and authors, a common regard and enthusiasm for this interesting animal abounds. That is where the similarities end, however, as there is great disparity in the content and quality of each chapter. Where several chapters provide considerable thoughtful analysis of and insight into a given topic, others are fundamentally a laundry list of previous works, with little synthesis or reflection. Although all chapters will serve as excellent reference guides for interested scientists—they each thoroughly catalog the work conducted to date—certain chapters were particularly insightful and consequently will be of interest to a much larger audience. For example, Peles and Barrett’s chapter on the energetic efficiency of the golden mouse presents a unique and compelling framework for integrating ideas from mouse physiology to population and community ecology, a feat rarely undertaken and of great value to the field beyond those working with this species. Also of note, S.W. Seagle’s treatment of the ecosystem ecology of the golden mouse, though disappointingly light on empirical examples (due to the paucity of studies of the golden mouse at this spatial scale), also presents much food for thought. As I read through this chapter, each question that came to my mind was satisfyingly answered or was identified as an area requiring further investigation. J Mammal Evol (2009) 16:73–74 DOI 10.1007/s10914-008-9080-z