Trap type and positioning: how to trap Savi’s pine voles using the tunnel system

Abstract

Savi’s pine vole, Microtus savii, is the most widespread Italian vole species, an important rodent pest in agriculture and yet one of the least studied species. One of the reasons for this gap in knowledge is that members of this species are quite difficult to capture with standard trapping procedures, being fossorial and rarely active aboveground. For this reason, we developed a protocol that maximizes trapping success. This method requires the identification of active tunnel holes and the placement of traps directly in front of the exits. We also compared capture and recapture rates of Savi’s pine voles in three different trap types: Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Longworth and Ugglan. If properly equipped with food and nesting material, INRA, Longworth and Ugglan traps showed similar capture rates, but the recapture rate of Ugglan traps was the highest of the three kinds of traps. These results, in combination with the species’ fossorial and social habits, lead us to conclude that Ugglan traps are the best suited for studies on Savi’s pine voles. Our results may have implications for planning and implementing management strategies based on traps rather than rodenticides, as well as field studies on other fossorial small mammals.

Assessment of seasonal variation of diet composition in rodents using DNA barcoding and Real-Time PCR

“…These were subsequently closed with soil. Burrows were then visited after 24 hours and traps placed close to those entrances that had been re-opened by voles 61 . A total of six sampling sessions were conducted along with vegetation sampling.…”

Modified live traps increase capture success of semifossorial voles in Alpine meadows

“…Our work presents a cost-effective, modified trap to increase the capture success of semifossorial voles in Alpine meadows. In these habitats, trapping success with traditional live-traps has been close to zero (Patriarca & Debernardi 1997;Bertolino et al 2007Bertolino et al -2008 and placing the entrance of the trap directly inside the first part of the tunnel (see Dell'Agnello et al 2018) is often not possible.…”

“…Accordingly, live-capture of rodents in open areas, such as farmlands, meadows and prairies (i.e. where roots and rocks are scarce or completely absent), is often challenging (Dell'Agnello et al 2018), thus limiting the completeness of checklists (Loy et al 2019) and, as a consequence, the reliability of global community studies (e.g. ecological, genetic and parasitological ones: Munger et al 1983;Blaustein et al 1996;Kosoy et al 2004).…”

“…In agroecosystems, capture success of semifossorial voles Microtus spp. may be increased by placing traps directly inside the first section of active tunnel exits, digging out some soil to better position the trap (Dell'Agnello et al 2018). This method, however, cannot be applied in Alpine meadows, where soil is hard and digging holes may be unacceptable (e.g.…”