The Tucos of Los Pozuelos

Last May, John and Eileen and Rachel, my labmate, went to the Los Pozuelos field site for the first time. They had been told by Pablo Cuello, a grad student in the university at Mendoza, Argentina, who had assisted us the year before and knew what a social tuco was, that the tucos he was seeing at this high altitude location looked suspiciously social. Not only were there lots of them in one area, one or more adults could be seen coming out of the same hole. It didn't take John and Eileen long, once they got there, to see that the tucos were social, and one of the primary reasons for this second trip was to confirm by radio telemetry that the areas individuals were using really did overlap.

Tissue sample was collected last May and we are still waiting for the genetic results from the lab in Mendoza but originally, this species was identified as Ctenomys opimus, which, from observations in other places, was characterized as a solitary animal. We are anxious to find out where this animal places in the known species of Ctenomys and if it truly is opimus or some subspecies or perhaps, something altogether different. Any of those possibilities are exciting... however, one thing is certain, the tucos that live in this area are social but do not exhibit the same social patterns we see in C. sociabilis in Patagonian Argentina.

In C. sociaibilis, we find females living in distinct colonies along with one adult male. Here, after MANY hours of radio telemetry (just ask Anna, the grad student who came out to join us!), we found that multiple males and multiple females overlap in the areas they use but not completely. The data are still being picked apart and analyzed but it looks like there are distinct groups but the groups don't necessarily inhabit the same space all the time. In addition, we did 3 nights of radio telemetry. There were 22 animals with radio collars and every hour on the hour all through the night and day, fixes were being made so we knew exactly where each individual was for that moment. This was no small feat... and I had to ask myself more than once, what the heck an almost 50 year old woman was doing out in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night stumbling around in the dark with an antenna in her hand looking for a rodent!

However, we did collect a lot of information and are trying to better understand the unique society this mystery tuco participates in. The other big question we are asking is what the mating and breeding cycle is. Last May, they found fairly large pups. In January, we saw a number of pregnant females but also some decent sized pups. The picture in this post is one of them. Do these tucos breed multiple times through the year? Or are females on different reproductive cycles? With multiple males living in the same group, is there competition for mating or is there one male dominating? Who disperses? Who stays? Although I found this place to be a rather intense field site, I have to admit that these tucos intrigue me. There are so many things to discover, and discovering the stories of animals is what excites me most in biology. More to tell in the next post!

Field Site #2

So, I'm happily back at home and thought that I would take the next couple of weeks to post pics and memories of the second field site we went to in the north central part of Argentina. I wrote earlier that we were headed to Jujuy (which, yes, is fun to say) but actually we were a 4 hour drive north in a place called Los Pozuelos. The nearest town was about an hour drive, due to the rough dirt roads.

The field site here was so much different than what I have experienced in Patagonia. The tucos live next to a river in a gravelly soil with low growing vegetation. There are no trees and no shade. We were there in the wet season, and often, the clouds gathered every afternoon. Sometimes there was rain but always there was lightning and thunder. The high altitude (~13,000 ft) was a challenge but coca leaves and aspirin helped with the headaches, and in time, even the sluggish feeling left. The glare of the afternoon sun was overwhelming and the only relief was to sit in the truck.

The days were spent watching tucos, catching tucos, collaring tucos with radios and tracking them with telemetry. Often we were out for 12+ hours. It was rather intense, especially after having just completed a field season elsewhere. Still, a ton of data was collected and a lot was learned. Next posting, I'll write about these mysterious tucos, which we know are social but don't know what species they are.

On the Beach

Well, it's been nearly a month now and I haven't posted a thing. You'd think from these pictures, I've only been relaxing and playing but inbetween, there's been a heck of a lot of field work in a completely different Argentina than I have seen before. Over the next couple of weeks, I will post the story of Jujuy or really, north of Jujuy, in a place called Los Pozuelos where we spent 3 weeks catching a tuco whose identity is not clearly known. The field site is a much harsher landscape than what I'm use to down near Bariloche, but the tucos are fascinating. They are definitely social but with different social habits than sociabilis.

I arrived in Mar del Plata, a city south of Buenos Aires and known as one of the hot vacation spots in Argentina, on 12 Jan after depositing my paperwork for permits in Buenos Aires. John, Anna and I (Eileen has gone home to teach classes) are hanging on the beach with good friends, Ana Paula and Alfredo, relaxing, eating asado and John is in heaven playing volleyball. I know you all feel sorry for me... not! But really, besides still missing home, I have come down with some stomach "bug" which has not made the time entirely perfect. Fortunately, Alfredo is a doctor and I am hoping the meds he suggested will work. Anna (fellow student from Berkeley) and I will head back to BA on Tuesday to finish up with permits and meet John for our flight home on Wednesday night. I have much more to tell and great pics to post over the next few weeks. Thanks for all the comments and emails... no worries to those of you who find this blog thing a bit complicated. Soon!