title: Caecal size and function in the rock elephant shrew Elephantulus myurus (Insectivora, Macroscelididae) and the Namaqua rock mouse Aethomys namaquensis (Rodentia, Muridae).
abstract: 1. The relative size of the digestive organs and the function of the caeca of an insectivorous elephant shrew Elephantulus myurus (Macroscelididae) and of a herbivorous rodent Aethomys namaquensis (Muridae) were compared. 2. Both species had similar body mass but A. namaquensis had a significantly heavier total digestive tract, full stomach, and caecum and a longer large intestine and caecum than E. myurus. 3. Both species had similar total volatile fatty acid (VFA) concentration and VFA % composition although A. namaquensis had a significantly higher % of n-butyric acid. Both had a similar caecal NH3-N concentration. 4. The presence of a functional caecum in E. myurus supports the view that Macroscelididae have evolved from ancestral herbivores and not from insectivores.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D002432:Cecum / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology; D004064:Digestive System / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D009115:Muridae / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D012788:Shrews / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D013045:Species Specificity