About the presence of the wood mouse Apodemus sylvaticus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Mammalia Rodentia Muridae) in a rocky habitat in the central Apennines (Italy)

Abstract

In this paper, some data about the presence of Apodemus sylvaticus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Mammalia Rodentia Muridae) in rocky environments of the National Park of the Sibillini Mountains are provided. Considering the available data on the distribution of A. sylvaticus in Italy, this appears to be an unusual finding, which can be explained considering the strong reduction that the preferred environment by this species, the wooded areas, has suffered in the past by man and possible competitions with other forest rodents.