Nocturnal activity of Iranian jerboa, <i>Allactaga firouzi</i> (Mammalia: Rodentia: Dipodidae)

Abstract

Abstract The study of the nocturnal activity pattern of Iranian jerboa showed that this species stayed out of the burrow nests for a large part of the night during the first and last weeks of the lunar month, whereby their nocturnal activities markedly decreased from a half to a full moon. The scale of activity was higher when the moon was low than when it was high. Additionally, activity shifted somewhat from open to vegetation cover when the moon was high. The higher predation risk in brighter nights is supposed to be the main reason for such an activity pattern.