Variations in population sizes of five rodent taxa across a habitat gradient in the Sinharaja rainforest, Sri Lanka

Wijesinghe, M.R.

doi:10.11609/jott.zpj.1374.2115-9

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…In fact trapping beyond this period in the seven forests only resulted in the capture of one additional species each in two of the seven forests. In a previous study conducted in 1999-2000 in the same locations within two of the forests Sinharaja and Yagirala, one more species was recorded in Sinharaja while two species less were recorded in Yagirala (WIJESINGHE, 2001). In the present study, commencing trapping on days of heavy rainfall was avoided since capture rates of animals on such days are less due to lower mobility (WIJES-INGHE, 2001).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 65%

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Efficiency of live trapping protocols to assess small mammal diversity in tropical rainforests of Sri Lanka

Wijesinghe

2024

Belg. J. Zool.

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Live trapping is used extensively for small mammal studies in both temperate and tropical ecosystems. The effectiveness of such studies is dependent on several factors. This paper attempts to investigate how one of these factors, namely the trapping intensity, affects the assessment of species richness and abundance of small mammals in rainforest ecosystems in southwest Sri Lanka. Eight-day live trapping surveys were conducted in seven selected forests yielding a total of 5600 trap days with a total of 186 individuals belonging to nine species being captured. It was evident that, using 100 traps with a trap density of 140 traps per ha, over 90% of the species recorded from each of the seven forests were captured within the initial four days of live trapping after which the rate of capture of new species sharply declined. The results also show that the more common species were captured sooner than the more rare ones. Considering these trends, a four-day trapping protocol could be recommended to broadly compare small mammal communities between forests or habitat types. The number of individuals captured, on the other hand, probably attracted by the bait, increased as trapping progressed; this very likely leads to overestimation of species abundance. Since such projects in developing countries are subject to budgetary constraints, costs incurred are also addressed.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 65%

“…The traps were baited with partially roasted coconut kernel. Coconut was found to be the ideal bait for trapping small mammals in wet forests (WIJESINGHE, 2001). Traps were checked each morning and the bait was renewed.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Efficiency of live trapping protocols to assess small mammal diversity in tropical rainforests of Sri Lanka

Wijesinghe

2024

Belg. J. Zool.

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“…The main fruiting season in lowland wet zone forests is during the months of April to August when rainfall is heavy. Increased populations occur at this time, presumably because food is more abundant (Leung 1999;Wijesinghe 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Many researchers have speculated that food limitation is responsible for the fluctuation of rodent populations in rainforest habitats (e.g. Alder 1994; Dunstan & Fox 1996;Shanker & Sukumar 1999;Wijesinghe 2006), although no study has experimentally manipulated food type and quantity to test this hypothesis in rainforests of South and Southeast Asia.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of food quality and availability on rainforest rodents of Sri Lanka

Ratnaweera¹,

Wijesinghe²

2009

J. Threat. Taxa

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Author Contribution: Pamoda B. Ratnaweera: Conducting experiments in Kanneliya, contributed towards writing and analyses in the field component. Mayuri R. Wijesinghe: Formulating initial concept, research design and methodology. Conducting field and laboratory work (all preference and tolerance trials in Sinharaja and part of field work in Kanneliya); analysis of results and writing paper.Acknowledgments: We are thankful to the National Science Foundation and the University of Colombo for funding this project. We are also grateful to the Forest Department and the Department of Wildlife Conservation for granting us permission to carry out studies on small mammals in the Sinharaja and Kanneliya forest reserves.

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“…The Ohiya rat shows all the three attributes of rarity according to the Rabinowitz’s (1981)‘seven forms of rarity’ model: (i) its range is indeed small (restricted between approximately 1000 and 2000 m above sea level) (Phillips 1980; Musser & Carleton 2005), (ii) it is highly specialized in habitat and dietary requirements (Wijesinghe & Brooke 2004), and (iii) its home ranges are small and densities low (Wijesinghe & Brooke 2004; Wijesinghe 2005). The scale of forest lost in Sri Lanka has been dramatic over recent centuries (Raheem 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phylogenetic position of the Ohiya rat (Srilankamys ohiensis) based on mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequence analysis

Bužan¹,

Pagès²,

Michaux³

et al. 2011

Zoologica Scripta

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Buzan, E. V., Pagès, M., Michaux, J. & Krystufek, B. (2011). Phylogenetic position of the Ohiya rat (Srilankamys ohiensis) based on mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequence analysis.-Zoologica Scripta, 40, 545-553. We investigated the phylogenetic position the Ohiya rat, endemic to Sri Lanka, Srilankamys (Rodentia, Murinae), within the tribe Rattini based on the combined analysis of three independent genes (a mitochondrial one and two nuclear exons). Three major lineages (the Maxomys, the Dacnomys and the Rattus divisions) were retrieved as monophyletic groups within the tribe Rattini. Srilankamys was not affiliated to any of the representatives of the Dacnomys division as it was supposed based on morphological characters, but clearly appeared as the first genus to diverge among the Rattus division. The Mindanao Shrew Mouse, Crunomys melanius, emerged as a part of the Maxomys division raising questions about the validity of the Crunomys and the Maxomys divisions as currently defined. Molecular date of divergence between Srilankamys and the other representatives of the Rattus division falls within the interval 6.7 ± 0.74 Mya, coinciding with the time of the isolation of Sri Lanka from the Deccan peninsula and the aridification period owing to the climate change at the end of the Miocene epoch. We suggest that the isolation of Sri Lanka from the continent, reinforced by the action of a seasonal monsoon-dominated climate, would have led to the isolation of some ancestral rodents of the Rattus division, which would have differentiated later into the Ohiya rat by a vicariant process. In a more general point of view, our study supports the previous results obtained on other organisms and evidence that Sri Lanka appears to be characterized by a particular fauna as compared to the Indian mainland. This island would therefore be considered as a specific distinct hotspot of biodiversity.

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Variations in population sizes of five rodent taxa across a habitat gradient in the Sinharaja rainforest, Sri Lanka

Cited by 3 publications

References 13 publications

Efficiency of live trapping protocols to assess small mammal diversity in tropical rainforests of Sri Lanka

Efficiency of live trapping protocols to assess small mammal diversity in tropical rainforests of Sri Lanka

Effect of food quality and availability on rainforest rodents of Sri Lanka

Phylogenetic position of the Ohiya rat (Srilankamys ohiensis) based on mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequence analysis

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