Growth Rate of Cheek Teeth in Narrow-Skulled Vole (Lasiopodomys gregalis) Depending on Food Abrasiveness

AbstractThe growth rate of the first lower molar and its wear features have been studied in narrow-skulled vole individuals (n = 39) that received hard and soft feeds under laboratory conditions. Using tetracycline markers, we have found that the tooth height increases by 0.33–0.56 mm throughout the day. Voles that received soft feed, in general, had a lower rate of molar growth, a lower crown, and a more obtuse wear angle of the chewing surface than the animals feeding on hard feed; they were also characterized by the appearance of lateral wear facets. As these signs of wear developed in animals fed soft food, the growth rate of the molar increased.