title: Golden hamsters are nocturnal in captivity but diurnal in nature.
abstract: Daily activity rhythms are nearly universal among animals and their specific pattern is an adaptation of each species to its ecological niche. Owing to the extremely consistent nocturnal patterns of activity shown by golden hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) in the laboratory, this species is a prime model for studying the mechanisms controlling circadian rhythms. In contrast to laboratory data, we discovered that female hamsters in the wild were almost exclusively diurnal. These results raise many questions about the ecological variables that shape the activity patterns in golden hamsters and the differences between laboratory and field results.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Zoology, Martin-Luther University, Halle-Wittenberg, Domplatz 4, 06108 Halle (Saale), Germany.
authors.forename: Rolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gattermann
authors.forename: Robert E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.forename: Nuri
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yigit
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Fritzsche
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Larimer
authors.forename: Sakir
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ozkurt
authors.forename: Karsten
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Neumann
authors.forename: Zhimin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Ercüment
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Colak
authors.forename: Joan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.forename: M Elsbeth
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: McPhee
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000830:Animals, Laboratory / Q000502:physiology*; D000835:Animals, Wild / Q000502:physiology*; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D006224:Cricetinae; D005260:Female; D008647:Mesocricetus / Q000502:physiology*; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D019370:Observation; D014421:Turkey