Journal ArticleDOI
Effects of farming practices on spatial behaviour of common voles
Jens Jacob,Nadine Hempel +1 more
TLDR
Common voles clearly reacted to sudden changes in vegetation height, which may indicate an immediate response to predation risk and a positive correlation of home-range size and vegetation height for plots with and without farming activity but no correlation with vegetation cover, population density, and breeding.Abstract:
This study aimed to reveal changes in spatial behaviour of common voles (Microtus arvalis) after alteration of their habitat by farming practices. Radio-collared common voles were tracked before and after mulching, mowing, harvesting wheat, and ploughing in the flood plain of the river Unstrut in central Germany. Voles undisturbed by agricultural practices were tracked on a mulchland, an abandoned pasture, and a cattle pasture. There was a large decrease in home-range size after harvesting wheat (96%, P<0.001). Changes after mowing (–74%, P=0.06) were almost significant whereas changes after mulching were not (+14%, P=0.60). On the cattle pasture we found a decrease in home-range size (42%, P=0.03) possibly due to increased spatial activity of cattle in autumn. There was a positive correlation of home-range size and vegetation height for plots with and without farming activity but no correlation with vegetation cover, population density, and breeding. Radio-collared common voles did not show evasive movements and farming practices did not cause a shift of centres of activity. Common voles clearly reacted to sudden changes in vegetation height, which may indicate an immediate response to predation risk.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Spatial genetic structure of a small rodent in a heterogeneous landscape.
TL;DR: This study investigated the population genetic structure and gene flow pattern for the common vole in a heterogeneous landscape characterised by strong spatial and temporal variation, and suggests intense small‐scale dispersal associated with a large effective population size.
Journal ArticleDOI
Short-term effects of farming practices on populations of common voles
TL;DR: In this paper, the short-term impact of mowing, mulching, harvesting and ploughing was studied on common voles (Microtus arvalis) population dynamics and demographic parameters.
Journal Article
Rodent Outbreaks: Ecology and Impacts
TL;DR: In this paper, a collation of contributions from Asia, Africa, Oceania (Australia and New Zealand), Europe, and North America is presented, which provides a modern appraisal to an age-old problem through a better understanding of the mechanisms that lead to rodent outbreaks, why rodent population numbers increase under different circumstances, and the impact of outbreaks in a range of different agroecosystems and native forests in different parts of the world.
Journal ArticleDOI
Common vole (Microtus arvalis) ecology and management: implications for risk assessment of plant protection products.
TL;DR: In this article, a review of the use of the common vole as a model small wild mammal species in the risk assessment process is presented, based on the information provided in the scientific literature, it seems justified to modify elements of the current risk assessment scheme for plant protection products.
Journal ArticleDOI
Small mammals in agricultural landscapes: Opposing responses to farming practices and landscape complexity
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the relative importance of local management and landscape context for small mammals in organic farming and found that complex landscapes significantly increased small mammal abundance and species richness and diversity, but only in conventional fields.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Behavioral decisions made under the risk of predation: a review and prospectus
Steven L. Lima,Lawrence M. Dill +1 more
TL;DR: This work has shown that predation is a major selective force in the evolution of several morphological and behavioral characteristics of animals and the importance of predation during evolutionary time has been underestimated.
Table of Equivalent Populations of North American Small Mammals
TL;DR: During 1943, 110 titles concerning population densities and home ranges of about 60 species of North American small mammals, covering most of the titles on the subject through 1941, were summarized by the writer, intended to compare methods and results of censuses.
Related Papers (5)
Microhabitat use, giving-up densities and temporal activity as short- and long-term anti-predator behaviors in common voles
Jens Jacob,Joel S. Brown +1 more