Patterns of Faunal Diversity and Species Abundance of Non-Volant Small Mammals on Negros Island, Philippines

1987 ◽  
Vol 68 (4) ◽  
pp. 884-888 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. D. Heideman ◽  
L. R. Heaney ◽  
R. L. Thomas ◽  
K. R. Erickson
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Faunal Diversity ◽  
Negros Island

Diet of the tiger quoll (Dasyurus maculatus)

1995 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 341 ◽  
Author(s):  
CA Belcher
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Prey Species ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
European Rabbit ◽  
Brushtail Possum ◽  
Important Prey ◽  
The Common ◽  
Common Brushtail Possum ◽  
Ringtail Possum

The diet of the tiger quoll (Dasyurus maculatus) in East Gippsland, Victoria, was investigated by systematically collecting scats from two latrines between December 1990 and May 1993. From the analysis of these scats, the tiger quoll was found to be a predator of vertebrate prey, largely dependent on mediumsized mammals (500 g to 5 kg). The most important prey species were the European rabbit, the common brushtail possum and the common ringtail possum. Other prey included Antechinus species, bush rats, echidnas, macropods, wombats, birds, invertebrates and reptiles. Some variation in diet occurred between seasons, due to seasonal availability of prey. A shift in diet detected between years was attributed to the variation in rainfall and the effect this had on prey species abundance. Significant differences in diet were found between adult and subadult tiger quolls. Subadult quolls consumed significantly more small mammals, ringtail possums, invertebrates and reptiles and significantly fewer rabbits than did adult quolls. Further analysis of the tiger quolls' diet, by estimating the mass contribution of prey taxa to the diet, revealed that medium-sized prey contributed more than 80% of the biomass of prey consumed.

scholarly journals Landscape and microhabitat features determine small mammal abundance in forest patches in agricultural landscapes

PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e12306
Author(s):  
Luca Dorigo ◽  
Francesco Boscutti ◽  
Maurizia Sigura
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Agricultural Landscape ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Species Interaction ◽  
Agricultural Landscapes ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Forest Patch ◽  
Generalist Species ◽  
Ecological Requirements

Intensification of agricultural landscapes represent a major threat for biodiversity conservation also affecting several ecosystem services. The natural and semi-natural remnants, available in the agricultural matrix, represent important sites for small mammals and rodents, which are fundamental for sustaining various ecosystem functions and trophic chains. We studied the populations of two small mammals (Apodemus agrarius, A. sylvaticus) to evaluate the effects of landscape and habitat features on species abundance along a gradient of agricultural landscape intensification. The study was performed in Friuli Venezia Giulia (north-eastern Italy) during 19 months, in 19 wood remnants. Species abundance was determined using Capture-Mark-Recapture (CMR) techniques. In the same plots, main ecological parameters of the habitat (at microhabitat and patch scale) and landscape were considered. Abundance of A. agrarius increased in landscapes with high extent of permanent crops (i.e., orchards and poplar plantations) and low content of undecomposed litter in the wood understory. Instead, A. sylvaticus, a more generalist species, showed an opposite, albeit less strong, relationship with the same variables. Both species were not affected by any landscape structural feature (e.g., patch shape, isolation). Our findings showed that microhabitat features and landscape composition rather than wood and landscape structure affect populations’ abundance and species interaction. The opposite response of the two study species was probably because of their specific ecological requirements. In this light, conservation management of agricultural landscapes should consider the ecological needs of species at both landscape and habitat levels, by rebalancing composition patterns in the context of ecological intensification, and promoting a sustainable forest patch management.

scholarly journals A comparison of native and non-native small mammals in adjacent karst and volcanic soil regions in NE Luzon, Philippines

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Native Species ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Volcanic Soils ◽  
Volcanic Soil ◽  
Dipterocarp Forest ◽  
Sierra Madre ◽  
Lowland Dipterocarp Forest ◽  
Elevational Range

Small mammal communities that occur in habitats on volcanic soil substrates have been extensively studied on Luzon Island, but those that occur in forest over limestone are poorly known and have not been directly compared to those over volcanic soils. We conducted field surveys of small mammals in forest over limestone from ca. 100 m to 590 m elevation in the vicinity of Callao Cave, and in adjacent lowland dipterocarp forest over volcanic soil from 490 m to 900 m, near the location of prior surveys from 1300 m to1550 m on Mt. Cetaceo, an extinct volcanic peak in the northern Sierra Madre range. Despite moderately heavy disturbance to the habitats over karst (limestone) and moderate disturbance to forest over volcanic soils, we found native small mammals overall at levels of species richness and abundance similar to what we have documented elsewhere on Luzon over the same elevational range. Non-native mammals were present at all localities in the karstic habitat but were absent in all types of forest over volcanic soils, even in areas recovering from prior disturbance. Although non-natives were moderately common in karstic areas, they rarely were more common than native species, and non-native species were no more successful at invading the disturbed karstic habitat than the native species were at persisting there. The most abundant small mammal in dipterocarp forest over volcanic soil (Apomys sierra) was absent in karstic localities, despite occurring in adjacent areas at overlapping elevation. Overall, the difference between small mammals in karst and lowland dipterocarp forest was mainly due to species composition rather than total abundance. Comparisons with data from a prior study on the upper slopes of Mt. Cetaceo showed that total native species abundance was highest in montane and mossy forest, typically about three times higher than in lowland dipterocarp forest. We confirmed the current presence of one species, Apomys microdon, reported as a fossil from Callao Cave, but the apparent absence of one other, Batomys sp.; both were from deposits dated as ca. 65,000 BP. We also summarize information about large mammals in the study areas. Further study of mammals in the distinctive forest over limestone is clearly needed. KEYWORDS: biodiversity, biogeography, Cagayan Valley, disturbed forest, elevation, fossils, Muridae, Sierra Madre, Soricidae

scholarly journals Population Resilience of Small Mammals. Why it is Important and What it Depends On?

2020 ◽  
pp. 503-523
Author(s):  
N. A. Shchipanov
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Biological Species ◽  
Natural Habitats ◽  
Internal Factors ◽  
Basic Principles ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
School Based

Small mammals are an active component of ecosystems that supports energy and matter flows and they are responsible for both construction of and maintaining their habitat. Such activity is vital for human prosperity, as it supports the chemical and physical quality of the environment where the human is adapted as a biological species. The contemporary human activity has resulted in destruction of a number of natural habitats and, as a consequence, in drastic changes in the species abundance. Some species have become so abundant that pose problems for human health, agriculture, and industries. Some formerly common and even pest small mammals, on the contrary, have reduced in distribution and numbers and now fall in the category of vulnerable species. In both cases, ecologically-based management of populations is required to maintain an optimal abundance of various species. Effective ecologically-based management of populations could be based on the basic principles of population ecology. It implies our understanding of both external and internal factors affecting the population abundance. Here, I review some fundamental principles which could be applied to operational management of populations. Also, I focus on some specifics of population reactions which have been elaborated in the Russian ecological school. Based on the well-known principles of supporting the numbers of populations, I propose a classification of species in terms of their ability to provide and change the type of functions in local populations. My classification allows distinguishing three groups of species with predictable resilience of population. Fitted to various environmental instabilities, the species of these groups require different conservation tactics.

Habitat utilisation by small mammals in a coastal heathland exhibiting symptoms of Phytophthora cinnamomi infestation

2006 ◽  
Vol 33 (8) ◽  
pp. 639 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Scott Laidlaw ◽  
Barbara A. Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Small Mammal ◽  
Phytophthora Cinnamomi ◽  
Species Abundance ◽  
Structural Factors ◽  
Native Plant ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Tea Tree ◽  
The Impact

Phytophthora cinnamomi is a soil-inhabiting ‘water mould’ that is pathogenic to many native plant species in Australia, and has been shown to alter plant species abundance and richness, as well as the structure of vegetation in sclerophyllous vegetation. This study investigated the effects of P. cinnamomi-induced vegetation disturbance and habitat degradation on microhabitat associations of small mammals in a coastal heathland in southern Australia. Seven small mammal species were trapped in a P. cinnamomi-infested heathland community over four years. Trap stations were classified into three disease classes (non-diseased, active disease and post-disease) and structural and floristic aspects of the vegetation were recorded at each station. The mean number of species captured was greatest in non-diseased areas and least in post-disease areas. The total capture frequency of small mammals was lower in post-disease areas except where they were covered by thick stands of tall tea-tree (Leptospermum sp.). Combined small mammal captures were associated with thick vegetation and floristic factors. Captures of Antechinus agilis, Rattus fuscipes, Rattus lutreolus and Sminthopsis leucopus were greatest in non-diseased vegetation and were less frequent in areas of diseased vegetation. A. agilis and R. fuscipes captures were correlated with a floristic factor associated with non-diseased vegetation, while R. lutreolus was associated with structural factors, preferring thick vegetation. The impact on Cercartetus nanus and Isoodon obesulus could not be assessed owing to low captures of these species. Modification of vegetation structure and floristics associated with P. cinnamomi infestation is having a significant impact on the habitat utilised by the small mammal communities in the area. This impact highlights the need to identify and protect those areas that remain free of P. cinnamomi infestation. Continued spread of the pathogen will reduce the area of suitable small-mammal habitat able to support the diverse communities of the eastern Otway Ranges, Victoria, Australia.

scholarly journals The diversity of small mammals in Pulau Perhentian Kecil, Terengganu, Malaysia

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 18427-18440
Author(s):  
Aminuddin Baqi ◽  
Isham Azhar ◽  
Ean Wee Chen ◽  
Faisal Ali Anwarali Khan ◽  
Chong Ju Lian ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Sandy Beaches ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Management Planning ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Tourism Management ◽  
Island Biodiversity ◽  
Faunal Diversity ◽  
Neighbouring Island ◽  
Development And Management

Islands are generally rich in marine biodiversity, but it also often hides unique and endemic terrestrial wildlife.  The data of terrestrial wildlife in Malaysian islands are still severely lacking, notably from small islands.  Hence, this study was conducted to survey and update the small mammal diversity (bats and non-volant small mammals) in Pulau Perhentian Kecil, a tourist destination famous for its magnificent, diverse marine life and white sandy beaches.  Despite their touristic popularity, very few information is known about the faunal diversity in this island compare to their more massive neighbouring island, Pulau Perhentian Besar.  The survey was carried out from 21 to 30 May 2014 recorded 56 individuals encompasses eight species of bats and five species of non-volant small mammals that were captured using mist nets, harp traps, and cage traps.  The survey recorded 10 new species locality records for the island in which, five species were never recorded in Pulau Perhentian Besar.  Hipposideros dyacorum, Tylonycteris fulvida, T. malayana, Rattus exulans, and Sundamys annandalei are also new distribution records for the Malaysian East Coast islands highlighting the importance of protecting island biodiversity.  Nonetheless, it is hoped that this study not only highlights the species diversity on the island but also serve as a data for sustainable island tourism management planning, which will be crucial for the sustainable development and management of this ecologically sensitive area.

Patterns in diversity and composition of the microbenthos of subarctic intertidal beaches with different morphodynamics

2020 ◽  
Vol 648 ◽  
pp. 19-38
Author(s):  
AI Azovsky ◽  
YA Mazei ◽  
MA Saburova ◽  
PV Sapozhnikov
Keyword(s):  
Species Abundance ◽  
Abundance Ratio ◽  
Wave Action ◽  
Coarse Grained ◽  
Sediment Properties ◽  
Β Diversity ◽  
Α Diversity ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Similar Mode ◽  
Abundance And Diversity

Diversity and composition of benthic diatom algae and ciliates were studied at several beaches along the White and Barents seas: from highly exposed, reflective beaches with coarse-grained sands to sheltered, dissipative silty-sandy flats. For diatoms, the epipelic to epipsammic species abundance ratio was significantly correlated with the beach index and mean particle size, while neither α-diversity measures nor mean cell length were related to beach properties. In contrast, most of the characteristics of ciliate assemblages (diversity, total abundance and biomass, mean individual weight and percentage of karyorelictids) demonstrated a strong correlation to beach properties, remaining low at exposed beaches but increasing sharply in more sheltered conditions. β-diversity did not correlate with beach properties for either diatoms or ciliates. We suggest that wave action and sediment properties are the main drivers controlling the diversity and composition of the intertidal microbenthos. Diatoms and ciliates, however, demonstrated divergent response to these factors. Epipelic and epipsammic diatoms exhibited 2 different strategies to adapt to their environments and therefore were complementarily distributed along the environmental gradient and compensated for each other in diversity. Most ciliates demonstrated a similar mode of habitat selection but differed in their degree of tolerance. Euryporal (including mesoporal) species were relatively tolerant to wave action and therefore occurred under a wide range of beach conditions, though their abundance and diversity were highest in fine, relatively stable sediments on sheltered beaches, whereas the specific interstitial (i.e. genuine microporal) species were mostly restricted to only these habitats.

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