Impact of agrocenoses on the populations of small mammals of recreational pine forests in the Tom River Valley

Luchnikova, E. M.; Ilyashenko, V. B.; Teplova, Natalya; Kovalevsky, A. V.; Zubko, K. S.

doi:10.1051/e3sconf/202017514002

“…An example of such cycles is the number of population surges of the water vole Arvicola amphibius (Linnaeus, 1758) in the valley of the middle course of the Tom River. Many scientific works are devoted to the changes in small mammal communities under the influence of various anthropogenic factors (Norrdal, 1995;Chernousova et al, 2014;Gallo et al, 2017;Luchnikova et al, 2020). Therefore, Balčiauskas & Balčiauskienė (2021) considered successional processes in communities of small mammals in flooded meadows that have transformed into hayfields.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Water vole (Arvicola amphibius) as an object of long-term biomonitoring in a floodplain area (Western Siberia, Russia)

Ilyashenko

¹

,

Luchnikova

²

,

Kovalevsky

³

2021

Biosys. divers.

1

0

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The paper is devoted to the dynamics of the water vole population in the conditions of total deforestation of valley forests and their subsequent restoration. We analyzed the relative population of small mammals in the typical biotopes in the Tom River basin (Western Siberia) on the border of the forest-steppe and taiga zones. From 1978 to 2019, 1,139 water voles Arvicola amphibius (Linnaeus, 1758) (synonym of A. terrestris) were caught with 50-meter trapping grooves; for 788 individuals we assessed the condition of non-metric features (phenes) of the skull. It was found that changes in the population level are non-cyclical, while against the background of a generally low occurrence of the species in the region, the population level increased tenfold in some years. It was shown that such episodic population surges can significantly impact the structure of the community of small mammals. In the valley of the Tom River, the water vole prefers inhabit wet meadows and ecotone areas between the meadow and the dark coniferous taiga forest. During the years of population surges, the water vole intensely occupies new nesting sites due to the dispersal activity of young animals but at the same time retains the original biotopic preferences. Dispersal of the species takes place in waterlogged wetlands. Most of the animals caught during the peak of their numbers were young animals of late broods born from overwintered individuals. The conducted phenetic analysis revealed the heterogeneity of young animals during the population surge, which allowed us to assume the participation of several populations in the formation of the peak. In the final surge year, the surge was characterized by an extremely low percentage of participation in the breeding of young females and the appearance of a large number of weakened animals, which led to crisis in the species population and the disappearance of the water vole from the captures. The research shows that one cannot predict the success of this process at the current stage; therefore, after flooding, it is necessary to continue monitoring.

show abstract

Dynamics of Mouse-Like Rodent Communities in Anthropogenically Disturbed Territories of the Southeast of Western Siberia (Kemerovo Region, Russia)

Ilyashenko

¹

,

Luchnikova

²

,

Danilov

³

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We studied the dynamics of mouse-like rodent communities in the area of self-growing vegetation, which had undergone deforestation. The research is based on the results of continuous monitoring conducted from 1978 to 2019. Pitfall traps was the method of catching small mammals during the monitoring period. We used Simpson’s Diversity Index to quantify species diversity. The community similarity was evaluated by the percentage of species through Czekanowski-Sørensen Index. The studies were carried out near the “Azhendarovo” Biological Station (54°45ʹ N, 87°01ʹ E). The results of the studies showed that natural primeval communities of the taiga zone before deforestation were characterized by a multidominant structure. The dominant group included the Alexandromys oeconomus Pallas, 1776, and codominant species are represented by the genus Clethrionomys. A characteristic feature of the small mammals’ population of taiga forests is the preponderance of the Apodemus peninsulae (Thomas, 1907) over the Apodemus agrarius Pallas, 1771. On meadowlands, the genus Microtus voles prevailed. These were largely the Al. oeconomus, which accounted for 43% of all mouse-like rodents. After the deforestation, the structure changed. In the early stage of deforestation, the dominant species among rodents was the Al. oeconomus. The composition of dominant species in the recovering areas of cut-down taiga began to approach to the original state 40 years after the deforestation. Meadow communities followed the path of transformation, having no analogs in the initial period and were characterized by a significant amount of ruderal vegetation.

show abstract

Water vole (Arvicola amphibious) as an object of long-term biomonitoring in a floodplain area (Western Siberia, Russia)

Ilyashenko

¹

,

Luchnikova

²

,

Kovalevsky

³

2021

Biosys. divers.

0

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The paper is devoted to the dynamics of the water vole population in the conditions of total deforestation of valley forests and their subsequent restoration. We analyzed the relative population of small mammals in the typical biotopes in the Tom River basin (Western Siberia) on the border of the forest-steppe and taiga zones. From 1978 to 2019, 1,139 water voles Arvicola amphibius (Linnaeus, 1758) (synonym of A. terrestris) were caught with 50-meter trapping grooves; for 788 individuals we assessed the condition of non-metric features (phenes) of the skull. It was found that changes in the population level are non-cyclical, while against the background of a generally low occurrence of the species in the region, the population level increased tenfold in some years. It was shown that such episodic population surges can significantly impact the structure of the community of small mammals. In the valley of the Tom River, the water vole prefers inhabit wet meadows and ecotone areas between the meadow and the dark coniferous taiga forest. During the years of population surges, the water vole intensely occupies new nesting sites due to the dispersal activity of young animals but at the same time retains the original biotopic preferences. Dispersal of the species takes place in waterlogged wetlands. Most of the animals caught during the peak of their numbers were young animals of late broods born from overwintered individuals. The conducted phenetic analysis revealed the heterogeneity of young animals during the population surge, which allowed us to assume the participation of several populations in the formation of the peak. In the final surge year, the surge was characterized by an extremely low percentage of participation in the breeding of young females and the appearance of a large number of weakened animals, which led to crisis in the species population and the disappearance of the water vole from the captures. The research shows that one cannot predict the success of this process at the current stage; therefore, after flooding, it is necessary to continue monitoring.

show abstract

Impact of agrocenoses on the populations of small mammals of recreational pine forests in the Tom River Valley

Cited by 3 publications

References 14 publications

Water vole (Arvicola amphibius) as an object of long-term biomonitoring in a floodplain area (Western Siberia, Russia)

Water vole (Arvicola amphibius) as an object of long-term biomonitoring in a floodplain area (Western Siberia, Russia)

Dynamics of Mouse-Like Rodent Communities in Anthropogenically Disturbed Territories of the Southeast of Western Siberia (Kemerovo Region, Russia)

Water vole (Arvicola amphibious) as an object of long-term biomonitoring in a floodplain area (Western Siberia, Russia)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About