scholarly journals Lunar illumination shapes small mammal activity in lowland agricultural landscapes

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carl Soulsbury
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammal ◽  
Bank Vole ◽  
Capture Rate ◽  
Common Shrew ◽  
Wood Mouse ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Lunar Phase ◽  
Vegetation Density ◽  
Light Levels

The behavioural patterns of small mammalian prey species have been shown to be widely impacted by predator avoidance. Cues to avoid predation may come from the predator itself or environmental cues, such as moonlight and available vegetative cover. We investigated how the activity of the bank vole Myodes glareolus, field vole Microtus agrestis, wood mouse Apodemus sylvaticus and the common shrew Sorex araneus were impacted by changes in habitat and lunar light conditions across a range of habitats (mainly grassland protected sites) in Lincolnshire (UK). Microhabitat vegetation density as well as weather conditions were recorded across all trap sites, with Longworth traps set overnight and the successfully captured species recorded the following morning. Overnight temperature was found to positively influence capture rate across all species. The lunar phase was found to significantly impact capture rate, with the gibbous lunar phase providing the highest capture rate across species. The interaction between illumination and vegetation density was also found to impact activity levels in the bank vole and wood mouse, with the bank vole showing higher activity in thick vegetation at low light levels and across habitats at higher light levels, whereas wood mice were more often captured in intermediate cover at low and intermediate illumination but across a range of habitats at brighter illumination. In combination, it suggests that small mammal activity is altered to potentially reduce predation risk. However, in this community at least, brighter lunar illumination leads to increase activity.  

Parasite dynamics in an invaded ecosystem: helminth communities of native wood mice are impacted by the invasive bank vole

Parasitology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 144 (11) ◽  
pp. 1476-1489 ◽  
Author(s):  
KAREN C. LOXTON ◽  
COLIN LAWTON ◽  
PETER STAFFORD ◽  
CELIA V. HOLLAND
Keyword(s):  
Bank Vole ◽  
Community Dynamics ◽  
Wood Mouse ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Disease Dynamics ◽  
Helminth Community ◽  
Wood Mice ◽  
Helminth Communities ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Native Host

SUMMARYIt is becoming increasingly evident that biological invasions result in altered disease dynamics in invaded ecosystems, with knock-on effects for native host communities. We investigated disease dynamics in an invaded ecosystem, using the helminth communities of the native wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) in the presence and absence of the invasive bank vole (Myodes glareolus) in Ireland. Native wood mice were collected over 2 years from four sites to assess the impact of the presence of the bank vole on wood mouse helminth community dynamics both at the component and infracommunity level. We found evidence for dilution (Syphacia stroma), spill-back (Aonchotheca murissylvatici) and spill-over (Taenia martis) in native wood mice due to the presence of the bank vole. Site of capture was the most important factor affecting helminth community structure of wood mice, along with year of capture and host-age and the interactions between them.

scholarly journals Discovery of the bank vole (Myodes glareolus) on Ushant Island (Brittany, France)

Mammalia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 83 (5) ◽  
pp. 496-500
Author(s):  
Olivier Lorvelec ◽  
Pascal Rolland ◽  
Patricia Le Quilliec ◽  
François Quénot ◽  
Alain Butet
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammal ◽  
Bank Vole ◽  
Ecological Monitoring ◽  
Barn Owl ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Term Basis ◽  
Suitable Habitats ◽  
Bank Vole Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Owl Pellets

Abstract Ecological monitoring of small mammal occurrence on Ushant Island (Brittany, France) revealed the presence of the bank vole (Myodes glareolus) in September 2017. This was the first report of the bank vole on the island. Evaluation of previous small mammal monitoring and analysis of several batches of barn owl pellets allowed us to conclude that the arrival on the island is recent, sometime between 1995 and 2017. Further study is necessary to determine whether the current population, still incompletely distributed into suitable habitats of the island, will be self-sustaining on a long-term basis.

scholarly journals Two hundred and fifty-four metagenome-assembled bacterial genomes from the bank vole gut microbiota

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anton Lavrinienko ◽  
Eugene Tukalenko ◽  
Timothy A. Mousseau ◽  
Luke R. Thompson ◽  
Rob Knight ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Community Composition ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Bank Vole ◽  
Sequence Data ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Wild Rodents ◽  
Bacterial Genomes ◽  
Shotgun Sequence ◽  
Essential Services

Abstract Vertebrate gut microbiota provide many essential services to their host. To better understand the diversity of such services provided by gut microbiota in wild rodents, we assembled metagenome shotgun sequence data from a small mammal, the bank vole Myodes glareolus (Rodentia, Cricetidae). We were able to identify 254 metagenome assembled genomes (MAGs) that were at least 50% (n = 133 MAGs), 80% (n = 77 MAGs) or 95% (n = 44 MAGs) complete. As typical for a rodent gut microbiota, these MAGs are dominated by taxa assigned to the phyla Bacteroidetes (n = 132 MAGs) and Firmicutes (n = 80), with some Spirochaetes (n = 15) and Proteobacteria (n = 11). Based on coverage over contigs, Bacteroidetes were estimated to be most abundant group, followed by Firmicutes, Spirochaetes and Proteobacteria. These draft bacterial genomes can be used freely to determine the likely functions of gut microbiota community composition in wild rodents.

scholarly journals Small mammals at forest plantations in the Jeseníky Mts. (Czech Republic)

2012 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 211-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Josef Suchomel ◽  
Ladislav Čepelka ◽  
Luboš Purchart
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammal ◽  
Habitat Preferences ◽  
Common Shrew ◽  
Rodent Species ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Forest Plantations ◽  
Small Mammal Community ◽  
Production Forests ◽  
Mammal Community ◽  
Abundant Population

Small mammal community was studied at Fagus sylvatica plantations in 2007–2011. The animals were captured in snap traps once a year in autumn in the course of three consecutive nights. The abundance, species composition, dominance and diversity were assessed with the help of the Shannon (H) and Simpson (1/D) indexes. A total of 586 individuals of 11 species were captured, out of this 8 rodent species (Rodentia) and 3 insectivorous species (Soricomorpha). Four species, namely Apodemus flavicollis (30.2%), Myodes glareolus (27.1%), Microtus agrestis (24.6%) and Sorex araneus (12.6%), were eudominant, one species was dominant (Microtus arvalis, D = 3.7%) and the remaining six species were subrecedent (D < 1%). The structure of the small mammal community was strongly affected by the herb layer composition. Population dynamics of A. flavicollis and M. glareolus fluctuated strongly in relation to beech nut crops in the surrounding high forests. The overall diversity was H = 1.546 a 1/D = 0.757 with equitability of 0.427, which indicates a highly unbalanced community. Differences in diversity, both at individual plots and in relation to altitude, were inconclusive (p > 0.05). The monitored plantations represented important habitats of rodent species significant in terms of forest management, as well as refugia of an abundant population of the common shrew. With respect to the subrecedent species (Sicista betulina, Muscardinus avellanarius, Crocidura suaveolens), the paper extends the knowledge on their habitat preferences. The obtained values on biodiversity give evidence of the key importance of forest plantations for the small mammal biodiversity in our production forests.

A large panel of novel microsatellite markers for the bank vole (Myodes glareolus)

2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 1164-1168 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. RIKALAINEN ◽  
A. GRAPPUTO ◽  
E. KNOTT ◽  
E. KOSKELA ◽  
T. MAPPES
Keyword(s):  
Microsatellite Markers ◽  
Bank Vole ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Large Panel ◽  
Bank Vole Myodes Glareolus

scholarly journals Rodent host population dynamics drive zoonotic Lyme Borreliosis and Orthohantavirus infections in humans in Northern Europe

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahdi Aminikhah ◽  
Jukka T. Forsman ◽  
Esa Koskela ◽  
Tapio Mappes ◽  
Jussi Sane ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Population Dynamics ◽  
Lyme Borreliosis ◽  
Bank Vole ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Northern Europe ◽  
Time Lags ◽  
Rodent Population ◽  
Vole Cycles ◽  
Infection Dynamics ◽  
Abundance Fluctuations

AbstractZoonotic diseases, caused by pathogens transmitted between other vertebrate animals and humans, pose a major risk to human health. Rodents are important reservoir hosts for many zoonotic pathogens, and rodent population dynamics affect the infection dynamics of rodent-borne diseases, such as diseases caused by hantaviruses. However, the role of rodent population dynamics in determining the infection dynamics of rodent-associated tick-borne diseases, such as Lyme borreliosis (LB), caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato bacteria, have gained limited attention in Northern Europe, despite the multiannual abundance fluctuations, the so-called vole cycles, that characterise rodent population dynamics in the region. Here, we quantify the associations between rodent abundance and LB human cases and Puumala Orthohantavirus (PUUV) infections by using two time series (25-year and 9-year) in Finland. Both bank vole (Myodes glareolus) abundance as well as LB and PUUV infection incidence in humans showed approximately 3-year cycles. Without vector transmitted PUUV infections followed the bank vole host abundance fluctuations with two-month time lag, whereas tick-transmitted LB was associated with bank vole abundance ca. 12 and 24 months earlier. However, the strength of association between LB incidence and bank vole abundance ca. 12 months before varied over the study years. This study highlights that the human risk to acquire rodent-borne pathogens, as well as rodent-associated tick-borne pathogens is associated with the vole cycles in Northern Fennoscandia, yet with complex time lags.

Small mammal mycophagy in hemiboreal forest communities of Lithuania

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 446-456 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marija Kataržytė ◽  
Ernestas Kutorga
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Fungal Spores ◽  
Seasonal Effects ◽  
Deciduous Tree ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Hypogeous Fungi ◽  
Fecal Samples ◽  
Significant Difference

AbstractThe diets of small mammals in different hemiboreal spruce-dominated, oak-dominated and mixed forests in western part of Lithuania were studied by examination of fungal spores in fresh fecal pellets of caught animals. In the diets of mice (Apodemus spp.), bank voles (Myodes glareolus), and common and pygmy shrews (Sorex araneus and S. minutus), 22 different fungal taxa were identified, 15 of which were hypogeous fungi. The sporocarp abundance and the spores in fecal samples of Elaphomyces fungi prevailed in study area during this investigation. Although most of the captured individuals consumed fungi, the consumption varied among small mammal species. The data show that the fungi were more frequent and taxonomically diverse in Myodes glareolus than in Apodemus spp. diets. The study provided evidence that the fungal component in the diets of insectivorous Sorex species is more diverse than previously known. The availability of sporocarps and the fungal component in the diets of small mammals showed seasonal effects. Annual hypogeous and epigeous sporocarp abundances did not vary significantly across forest types. The significant difference in mycophagy was observed across all forest cover types, with the greatest fungal diversity in fecal samples collected in mixed coniferous-deciduous tree stands.

scholarly journals Small-mammal assemblages inhabiting Sphagnum peat bogs in various regions of Poland

2012 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 115-133
Author(s):  
Mateusz Ciechanowski ◽  
Jan Cichocki ◽  
Agnieszka Ważna ◽  
Barbara Piłacińska
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammal ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Habitat Degradation ◽  
Myodes Glareolus ◽  
Peat Bogs ◽  
Trophic Conditions ◽  
Characteristic Features ◽  
Mammal Assemblages ◽  
Sorex Minutus ◽  
Pygmy Shrew

Abstract We studied species composition of assemblages of small mammals (rodents and shrews) inhabiting Polish 25 ombrotrophic mires and quaking bogs in several regions in order to reveal characteristic features of their quantitative structure and compare them between regions, internal zones of the bog habitats, and different levels of anthropogenic degradation. We reviewed also all published results of small-mammal trapping in such habitats. Mammals were captured in pitfalls, snap traps and live traps on 12 bogs of the Pomerania region, 4 bogs of the Orawa-Nowy Targ Basin (Kotlina Orawsko-Nowotarska), 3 bogs in the Świętokrzyskie Mts, and 6 bogs in Wielkopolska and the Lubusz Land. Additionally, we included materials collected from Barber traps (pitfalls) used during studies of epigeic invertebrates on 4 bogs. In total, 598 individuals of 12 species were collected. The number of pitfall captures per 100 trapnights was very low (7.0-7.8), suggesting low population density. Shrews predominated among mammals captured in pitfalls, and the assemblage structure appeared to be similar to impoverished forest fauna, slightly enriched with ubiquitous species from meadows and agroecosystems, with a very small percentage of typical wetland species (Neomys fodiens, Neomys anomalus, Microtus oeconomus). Rodents (mostly Myodes glareolus) predominated only in samples obtained by live and snap traps. Pygmy shrew Sorex minutus was the most numerous species at most sites, sometimes being the only small mammal in that habitat, especially in well-preserved, treeless parts of bogs, dominated by Sphagnum peatmoss. The dominance and high constancy of S. minutus appear to be a characteristic feature of small-mammal assemblages inhabiting ombrotrophic mires, at least in some regions of Central and Western Europe. Enrichment of the fauna with other species might be related to either improved trophic conditions (by contact with mineralized ground waters) or habitat degradation (by peat mining, drainage, and subsequent secondary succession).

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