Arable habitat use by wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus). 1. Macrohabitat

Abstract

Wood mice Apodemus sylvaticus were radio-tracked in an area covering three cereal ®elds, which was notionally divided into 565 m squares; each of these squares was classi®ed to one of four habitat types (hedgerow, wheat, barley and oil-seed rape). From a sample of 79 radio-tracked wood mice, yielding 8500 ®xes, we de®ned home-range boundaries and estimated for two seasons: (a) the extent to which each habitat was present in each individual's home range relative to its overall availability in the surrounding landscape; (b) the extent to which each habitat was used by the mice relative to its abundance within a home range. Hedgerow ranked highest in preference (as distinct from use) for all comparisons made in both winter and summer. In winter, home ranges contained signi®cantly more hedgerow than barley and wheat, and signi®cantly more rape than wheat. Animals also used the habitats within their home ranges non-randomly, with a signi®cant preference for hedgerow. In summer, home ranges contained signi®cantly less rape than other habitats. Habitats within home ranges were used at random. Seasonal patterns in habitat use appeared to be largely a response to seasonal disturbance and the availability of cover in the ®elds.

Effects of agriculture expansion and intensification on the vertebrate and invertebrate diversity in the Pampas of Argentina

“…Loss of ecological heterogeneity directly affects the diversity, abundance, and distribution of small mammals (Todd et al 2000;Jacob 2003;Millán de la Peña et al 2003), particularly the rare or habitat-specialist species. Those Pampean species associated with grassland remnants and linear undisturbed habitats were affected by the loss of sites for nesting and digging shelters (Hodara et al 1997;Gómez Villafañe et al 2005).…”

Long‐term variations in rodent abundance in a rural landscape of the Pampas, Argentina

“…In addition to climate fluctuations, most farming and agricultural practices affect the distribution and habitat use of small mammals, but their response may differ depending on the type and intensity of the disturbance Todd et al 2000;Jacob 2003;Jacob and Hempel 2003;Millan de la Pena et al 2003;Michel et al 2006). The differential effects on different species cause community changes in species composition and relative abundance, favoring some species that are preadapted to the changes, and reducing others.…”

The effects of local and landscape-scale habitat characteristics and prey availability on corridor use by carnivores: A comparison of two contrasting farmlands

“…Similarly the corridors leading through the human-modified landscapes have previously been reported as important habitats for small mammals (Michel et al 2007), where they achieve high diversity and densities, compared to the agricultural arable matrix (e.g. Todd et al 2000).…”

“…Our results imply that carnivore corridor use was primarily driven by higher prey availability of principal prey, small mammals, suggesting that corridor management may also have important ramifications for conservation of small mammal populations. Shrub cover may be an important habitat element for carnivores (Mangas et al 2008; this study) and small mammal populations (Todd et al 2000). Vertical and horizontal microhabitat diversity of shrub vegetation provides cover for foraging, shelter, and minimises predation risk and thus the maintenance of shrubs in agricultural landscape could be crucial for conservation and coexistence of carnivores and other farmland biota (Mangas et al 2008;Nikolov et al 2011).…”

“…The preference for shrub habitats by medium-sized carnivores may also play a role in antipredation behaviour, because enhanced canopy cover could minimalise predation risk by visually oriented avian predators (Zub et al 2008). Moreover, shrub vegetation is also known to be an important habitat for some species of small mammals (Todd et al 2000).…”