Habitat selection of European pine marten in Central Italy: from a tree dependent to a generalist species

Abstract

Studies at small spatial scale are often fundamental to highlight the behavioural plasticity of a species and thus have important implications for conservation planning, in particular for species usually considered as habitat specialists. We investigated secondorder habitat selection of the European pine marten in an area dominated by deciduous oak forest and open fields in central Italy, by radio-tracking 16 pine martens (eight males, eight females). Pine martens placed home ranges in areas with more open field than in the study area, whereas woodland (oak and conifer forests) comprised a smaller portion of the home range than predominant forest character of the studied area. Although the presence of the species in the open habitats has been documented, to our knowledge, our results provide the first evidence of home range establishment in this cover type by pine marten at population level. The combination of low predation risk and high availability of resources could allow pine martens to occupy open fields in our study area. We highlighted different individual strategies of habitat selection, with some individuals placing home ranges in areas with high forest coverage while others occupying open areas. We found no effects of sex and body condition on habitat selection, and this could indicate that in the study area, both forested and non-forested cover types, such as open fields, shrub and anthropic areas, can provide adequate food, overhead cover and resting sites for all individuals. Pine marten ability to occupy open fields seems thus more related to the behavioural flexibility of the species, rather than to the need to supplement dens and forage from complementary lower quality habitat. The high quality of the Mediterranean continental area studied could also explain the selection of open areas by the pine marten. Our results offer useful information on pine marten ecology and may be helpful for conservation management of this species in southern Europe.

Predicted distribution of a rare and understudied forest carnivore: Humboldt marten (Martes caurina humboldtensis)

“…Dense and spatially-extensive shrubs, also an uncharacteristic vegetation association for martens elsewhere in North America, was a consistent habitat component in most studies of Humboldt martens ( Slauson, Zielinski & Hayes, 2007 ; Eriksson et al, 2019 ; Gamblin, 2019 ; Moriarty et al, 2019 ). Similarly, European pine martens ( Martes martes ) have long been considered a habitat specialist associated with older forests ( Storch, Lindstrom & De Jounge, 1990 ; Brainerd & Rolstad, 2002 ), yet have recently been documented in a wide variety of habitat types including shrublands, grasslands, and agricultural areas ( Lombardini et al, 2015 ; Balestrieri et al, 2016 ; Moll et al, 2016 ; Manzo et al, 2018 ).…”

Postrelease movement and habitat selection of translocated pine martensMartes martes

“…were selected for marten release as they provided a diverse structural environment required for denning, combined with fields and edge-habitat in which to forage, resulting in the use of habitat proportional to its availability. Recent studies provide supporting evidence that pine martens are less habitat-specific than previously thought (Manzo et al, 2018), suggesting that a combination of habitat types is required. This landscape complementation (Dunning, Danielson, & Pulliam, 1992) enables individuals to utilize different habitat types for different functions or key resources.…”

“…Martens are predominantly viewed as forest specialists (Balestrieri et al, 2010; Balharry, 1993; Bartolommei et al, 2016; Manzo, Bartolommei, Rowcliffe, & Cozzolino, 2012; Slough, 1989; Storch, 1990; Weber, Roth, Tesini, & Thiel, 2018) and often den in tree cavities found in ancient woodland. Nevertheless, martens can traverse and utilize areas of scrub and low canopy cover (Balestrieri et al, 2010; Lombardini et al, 2015; Manzo et al, 2012; Moll et al, 2016; Pereboom et al, 2008), with some studies even showing preferential use of such open habitats (Manzo et al, 2018). In many regions with fragmented forest, pine marten diet is dominated by grassland voles Microtus spp., found in edge and open habitats containing tussock grass (Caryl et al, 2012; Hansson, 1978).…”

Nuevos datos de distribución de marta Martes martes en Ourense, Galicia. El fototrampeo como herramienta de muestreo de la especie

“…Aunque tradicionalmente la marta está considerada como una especie ligada a grandes extensiones de bosques maduros bien estructurados, dejando los hábitats más fragmentados y humanizados para su congénere la garduña (Delibes 1983, Larroque et al 2015, Wereszczuk & Zalewski 2015, la mayoría de la cuadrículas nuevas con presencia de la especie presentadas en este trabajo se corresponden a este último tipo de hábitat, donde los parches de bosque, de mayor o menor entidad, se encuentran rodeados de gran número de carreteras, aldeas y pueblos, áreas de cultivo e, incluso, zonas industriales, como otros autores también han comprobado en diferentes regiones (Pereboom et al 2008, Balestrieri et al 2010, Mergey et al 2011, Weber et al 2018. Esto evidencia la gran plasticidad ecológica de la especie (Clevenger 1993(Clevenger , 1994, que en Galicia parece adaptarse al alto grado de humanización del territorio, no mostrándose tan dependiente de hábitats inalterados como podría esperarse, tal y como Manzo et al (2018) comprobaron en una zona similar del centro de Italia.…”

“…La marta Martes martes (Linnaeus, 1758) es un Mustélido de distribución paleártica, normalmente asociado a bosques maduros, con gran complejidad estructural y relativamente bien conservados, tanto de coníferas como caducifolios (Brainerd 1990, Brainerd & Rolstad 2002, Zalewski & Jȩdrzejewski 2006, Barja 2017, en los que alcanza sus mayores densidades (Proulx et al 2005). También puede ocupar hábitats más fragmentados en los que existan pequeños parches de bosque (Mergey et al 2011, Caryl et al 2012, Balestrieri et al 2014, Lombardini et al 2015 e incluso llega a establecerse en bosques jóvenes (Brainerd et al 1994, Pereboom et al 2008, matorrales (Clevenger 1993, De Marinis & Massetti 1993, Clevenger 1994, áreas abiertas y agrícolas (van Maanen 2015, Manzo et al 2018, y zonas rurales con alta densidad de presuntas barreras para la especie, tales como aldeas o carreteras, donde tradicionalmente no se esperaría detectarla (Larroque et al 2015, Weber et al 2018. En España se desconocen aspectos tan básicos de la especie como su ecología o su distribución precisa.…”