Abstract
Abstract. For many years, Tupaia (family Tupaiidae), most commonly known as tree shrews, have been studied almost exclusively by zoologists resulting in a controversial debate on their taxonomic status among mammals. Today, tree shrews are placed in the order Scandentia; they are valuable, widely accepted and increasingly used model animals as an alternative to rodents and non-human primates in biomedical research. After a brief description on how tree shrews entered science and their taxonomic odyssey, the present article describes the history of the tree shrew (Tupaia belangeri) colony at the German Primate Center and selected aspects of our work with special emphasis on the psychosocial stress model in these animals.
Highlights
The earliest published account of treeshrews is that of Ellis (17801, 17822), one of the surgeons of Captain Cook’s expedition
After a brief description on how tree shrews entered science and their taxonomic odyssey, the present article describes the history of the tree shrew (Tupaia belangeri) colony at the German Primate Center and selected aspects of our work with special emphasis on the psychosocial stress model in these animals
2 The tree shrew colony at the German Primate Center In December 1983, Hans-Jürg Kuhn transferred a group of 18 male and 23 female Tupaia belangeri from the Zoological Institute, University of Munich, to Göttingen
Summary
In a comprehensive survey of the family of Tupaiidae Lyon Jr. (1913) provides in the first chapters of his article the following historical summary on the discovery of tree shrews: The earliest published account of treeshrews is that of Ellis (17801, 17822), one of the surgeons of Captain Cook’s expedition. A rough but very accurate sketch of the animal was made by Ellis and a Latin diagnosis of it written in his journal. This description of the animal was published by Gray in 18603. There can be no doubt from Ellis’ picture or description that his squirrels were Tupaias (see Fig. 1). Tupaias as such were first brought to the attention of the world by Diard, a French naturalist, at one time an assistant of Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, in November, 1820, under the designation of Sorex glis (Diard, 18204).
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