Summary
Three non-continuous skeletal variants were studied in skulls from a captive colony of the California vole. Such variation is heritable in at least one of these traits and may be in the others. Skeletal variants can therefore be used as a measure of genetical differences between local populations. This conclusion supports previous work on inbred lines of house mice which has demonstrated that both developmental and genetic factors affect skeletal variation.
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References
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Hilborn, R. Inheritance of skeletal polymorphism in Microtus californicus. Heredity 33, 87–89 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.1974.67
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/hdy.1974.67
