Volokh,
A. 2021. Determination of age of the Eurasian beaver (Castor
fiber). Theriologia Ukrainica, 22:
49–62.
title |
Determination
of age of the Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) |
author(s) |
Anatoliy Volokh (orcid: 0000-0003-1291-921X) |
affiliation |
Dmytro Motorny Tavria
State Agrotechnological University (Меlіtopol, Ukraine) |
bibliography |
Theriologia Ukrainica.
2021. Vol. 22: 49–62. |
DOI |
http://doi.org/10.15407/TU2206 |
|
|
language |
Ukrainian, with Englishsummary,
titles of tables, captures to figs |
abstract |
The article
presents data on body size and weight of beavers
of different ages from Ukraine (Dnipro basin), as
well as features of determining the age of males
by the size of the baculum and taking into account
the bonding lines in the periosteal zone of the
mandible. In addition, this paper summarizes the
methods for determining the age of the Eurasian
beaver, which are used in different countries. Among
them are methods that determine the age of beaver
by size and body weight, by traces, by craniological
features, by the length of the sagittal ridge, by
the developmental features and functional state
of teeth, by the width of the incisor and the interorbital
width of the skull, by the stratification of dentin
or cement, and by size and weight of the baculum.
The body weight of beavers from Ukraine was 7.0
± 0.31 (5.5–7.9) kg in individuals of 6–7 months
of age, 9.1 ± 0.26 (8.6–9.5) kg in one year old
individuals, 12.7 ± 0.30 (11.0–13.9) kg in two years
old beavers, 15.6 ± 0.45 (14.4–17.0) kg in individuals
of 2.4–3.0 years of age, and 21.8 ± 0.81 (16.2–30.0)
kg in beavers over 3.0 years of age. The size of
the skull in subsequent age groups was characterized
by a significant transgression by the interorbital
and zygomatic width of the skull and they clearly
differed from one another only by the total length
of the skull. Curiously, the mass of the baculum
in the Elbe beaver (С. fiber albicus Matschie, 1907)
significantly exceeds that of beavers from Ukraine,
which may be a results of geographic variation of
the animals. In the 1970s, a new method of post-mortem
determination of the age of beavers was proposed
by studying the polished section of the first molar
measuring the height of dentin-enamel loops as well
as the thickness of the layer of cement and secondary
dentin. It was found that in beavers the cement
layer appears in the second year in the lower part
of the tooth and, gradually increasing with age,
almost completely displaces the dentin-enamel loops
by the end of the animal's life. At 3–4 years, secondary
dentin appears, which occupies an intermediate position
between the cementum and the lower part of the tooth,
and, when the latter is chipped, it fills certain
areas of its occlusal surface. In addition, there
is a method of classification of beavers by age
groups (up to 1 year, 1–3 years, over 3 years) based
on measuring the radii of the external and internal
curvature of the incisors. Depending on the age
of the animals, all methods allow to obtain fairly
accurate results. |
keywords |
beaver, baculum, age,
teeth, dentin, sagittal ridge. |
|
|
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