25Several studies have shown that forest management (e.g. for timber production) affects mammal 26 communities. Nevertheless, we still lack a detailed understanding on how different management 27 practices influence individuals and populations. The overarching goal of our work was to 28 investigate the demographic response of the hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius) to forest 29 management. We focused on a set of key individual (survival and litter size) and population 30 (abundance of individuals) parameters to test whether forest management affects dormice and 31 which habitat variables are responsible for such effects. We surveyed a dormice population for 3 32 years in a continuous forest in central Italy including sites subjected to different management 33 regimes: 5 coppiced stands (2 recently coppiced and 3 old coppice stands), 2 abandoned stands with 34 regrowing forest and 3 high forest stands. We found a strong effect of forest management on hazel 35 dormice, acting mainly through the variation in food resources. Regrowing forests were the most 36 suitable stands for dormice, whereas recent coppices were the most unsuitable, with an ephemeral 37 presence of a few individuals. Old coppices and high forest stands were both able to sustain local 38 populations but at lower densities and with a higher mortality and/or emigration of younger and/or 39 weaker individuals than the regrowing forest. Through our detailed analyses we were able to 40 uncover the demographic mechanism underlying the effects of forest management on hazel dormice 41 populations; our findings strongly suggest that maintaining an heterogeneous successional 42 composition may be the most effective strategy for the conservation of this species. 43 44
Effective and easy-to-apply monitoring techniques are necessary to detect alien species at their first stage of invasion, allowing rapid removal or delimitation of the invaded range for eradication or routine control actions. Monitoring tools should be effective in detecting the target species, reduce false absences and allow an early detection. The coypu (Myocastor coypus), is a large semi-aquatic rodent native to subtropical and temperate South America, introduced all over the world for its valuable fur. We tested tracking plates in the framework of a coypu occupancy study in order to take into account false absences and define a standardized monitoring protocol for the species with a limited engagement of staff. We set 60 tracking plates in linear transects along artificial waterbodies within the rice district in northwestern Italy and checked them for six consecutive days. For the analyses we fitted single-season occupancy models to our detection history data. We detected coypu presence at least once in 29 out of the 60 investigated transects (48%). When modelling occupancy and detection probability constant in time and space, the estimate Ψ was 0.48 and detection probability p was 0.60. A minimum of four consecutive visits to the transects provided reliable detection. Coypu's probability of presence was significantly driven by the amount of surface covered by rice plantations around the investigated water courses. The proposed method may function as a tool for the rapid detection of coypu on large scale monitoring projects and in case of new colonization, and as a basis for subsequent prompt control actions.
In this long-term study, we evaluated the distribution of three species of Glirids: Hazel Dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius), Garden Dormouse (Eliomys quercinus) and Edible Dormouse (Glis glis) in the Gran Paradiso National Park (Western Italian Alps). The aim was to investigate the ecology, adaptation strategies, and distribution of these dormouse populations along an altitudinal gradient. Monitoring started in 2015 and is still ongoing. We used five different techniques (searching for nests, grids of nest boxes, transects of live traps, nesting tubes, and footprint tunnels), placed along an altitudinal gradient from 700 to 2300 m a.s.l. We found a total of 680 signs of the presence of Hazel Dormouse and 46 individuals, 275 signs and 142 individuals of the Garden Dormouse and 674 signs and 67 individuals of the Edible Dormouse. The three species selected different altitudinal gradients: Edible Dormouse from 800 to 1700 m, with a prevalence between 800-1100 m; Garden Dormouse from 1100 to 2000 m, with a prevalence between 1400-1700 m. The Hazel Dormouse was ubiquitous from 800 to 2032 m, without a clear altitudinal pattern. Edible Dormice were mainly found in deciduous and mixed forests, while Garden Dormice usually occurred in coniferous forests. The Hazel Dormouse seemed to be regularly distributed in all forest types up to the tree limit. These results, obtained from diverse methodologies, permitted comparison between the monitoring protocols, improved knowledge of habitat selection by Glirids in Alpine habitats, as well as providing novel insights within the context of climate change.
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