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Title: Evidence of a population of leaf-eared mice Phyllotis vaccarum above 6,000 m in the Andes and a survey of high-elevation mammals
Abstract

Biologists have long pondered the extreme limits of life on Earth, including the maximum elevation at which species can live and reproduce. Here we review evidence of a self-sustaining population of mice at an elevation that exceeds that of all previously reported for mammals. Five expeditions over 10 years to Volcán Llullaillaco on the Argentina/Chile border observed and collected mice at elevations ranging from 5,070 m at the mountain’s base to the summit at 6,739 m (22,110 feet). Previously unreported evidence includes observations and photographs of live animals and mummified remains, environmental DNA, and a soil microbial community reflecting animal activity that are evaluated in combination with previously reported video recordings and capture of live mice. All of the evidence identifies the mouse as the leaf-eared mouse Phyllotis vaccarum, and it robustly places the population within a haplotype group containing individuals from the Chilean Atacama Desert and nearby regions of Argentina. A critical review of the literature affirms that this population is not only an elevational record for mammals but for all terrestrial vertebrates to date, and we further find that many extreme elevations previously reported for mammals are based on scant or dubious evidence.

 
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Award ID(s):
1754748 1736249
NSF-PAR ID:
10371182
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
Publisher / Repository:
Oxford University Press
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Journal of Mammalogy
Volume:
103
Issue:
4
ISSN:
0022-2372
Format(s):
Medium: X Size: p. 776-785
Size(s):
["p. 776-785"]
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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