The jaw musculature and its innervation in the Chrysochloridae studied is typicaly mammalian except that the m. temporalis occupies the whole of the orbito-temporal fossa. The antemolar teeth are specialized, while the molars are simple and primitive. Normally the diet of Golden Moles consists of earthworms, insects in all stages of development and millipedes. The firm implantation of the antemolar teeth can be correlated with their function of catching the prey, while the molars are adapted for a worm-like diet. The available evidence indicates that the genera Bematiscus and Chrysospalax are more primitive than the other Golden Moles. Since Golden Moles feed on insects in all stares of development and millipedes, they can be considered as being of economic importance.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:rhodes/vital:5892 |
| Date | January 1958 |
| Creators | Thelejane, Thomas Sohl |
| Publisher | Rhodes University, Faculty of Science, Zoology |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, Masters, MSc |
| Format | 61 p., pdf |
| Rights | Thelejane, Thomas Sohl |
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