Dispersal of Pygmy Wood Mouse (Sylvaemus uralensis Pallas, 1811) and Bank Vole (Clethrionomys glareolus Schreber, 1780) in a Fragmented Landscape
O. V. TOLKACHEV
Institute of Plant and Animаl Ecology, UB RAS, 620144, Yekaterinburg, 8 Marta str., 202
Keywords: грызуны, расселение, дисперсия, rodents, dispersal, long-distance migration
Abstract
Migration processes, as well as birth and death rate determine the population dynamics. The main type of migration for rodents is dispersal which has not been studied thoroughly. The typical and maximum distances of species dispersal and permeability of some landscape elements are yet to be found out. The aim of this study was to investigate the dispersal of two most abundant rodent species using a specifically modified method of non-selective marking. It was found out that dispersal distance of a pygmy wood mouse ( Sylvaemus uralensis Pallas, 1811) is larger than that of a bank vole ( Clethrionomys glareolus Schreber, 1780). The determined dispersal distance of the bank vole (up to 2 km) proved the longest for this species. Dispersal process and spatial structure of rodent populations were greatly affected by the territory characteristics. Barrier landscape elements that impede the dispersal, can increase the animals’ local density. The “migrant trap” effect was described for the first time.
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