Spatial patterns and drivers of invasive rodent dynamics in New Zealand forests

Walker, Susan; Kemp, Joshua R.; Elliott, Graeme; Mosen, Corey; Innes, John

doi:10.1007/s10530-019-01922-0

Cited by 26 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 18 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Feral cats and European hedgehogs are less frequent targets of pest control in New Zealand but can have severe impacts on native invertebrates (Jones et al 2013), herpetofauna (Spitzen‐van der Sluijs et al 2009, Woinarski et al 2018), ground‐nesting birds (Sanders and Maloney 2002, Innes et al 2010), and other small mammals (Loss et al 2013, Woinarski et al 2019) worldwide. Long‐term invertebrate, vegetation, and herpetofauna studies were under‐represented compared to birds, particularly within peninsula‐fenced ecosanctuaries, as were beech forest ecosanctuaries where small mammals undergo irruptive dynamics (King 1983, Ostfeld and Keesing 2000, O’Donnell and Hoare 2012, Elliott and Kemp 2016, Walker et al 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long‐term biodiversity trajectories for pest‐managed ecological restorations: eradication vs. suppression

Binny

Innes

Fitzgerald

et al. 2021

Ecological Monographs

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Invasions by alien pest species contribute heavily to global biodiversity decline, with invasive mammals having some of the greatest impacts on endemic biota. Pest management within ecological restorations is therefore critical for conserving threatened biota. Coordinating restoration efforts at global scale requires evidence of the relative efficacy of different pest-managed restoration approaches ("regimes") for enhancing biodiversity. Our national meta-analysis of 447 biodiversity responses across 16 ecological restorations quantifies significant benefits for biodiversity over two decades and multiple trophic levels, and across a spectrum of invasive mammal suppression-to-eradication regimes. Deeply endemic species had the strongest responses to pest control compared with recent native or introduced biota. Using this information, we predict levels of pest suppression required to confer biodiversity benefits, to guide future management strategies. Our findings provide new evidence that invasive pest control is an effective approach to ecological restoration, to aid decision-makers in setting objectives and making targeted investments.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long‐term biodiversity trajectories for pest‐managed ecological restorations: eradication vs. suppression

Binny

Innes

Fitzgerald

et al. 2021

Ecological Monographs

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Rodent density estimates in studies published before 2004 are listed in [ 67 , 68 ]. Populations are known to fluctuate greatly, with spikes associated with seed masting events [ 69 , 70 ]. Although mice and rats are known to be present in pastures, there is a dearth of information on their abundance in farm habitats.…”

Section: Barriers For Ballum Spillovermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A study in grazed or fenced fragments of native forest showed a higher density of ship rats in the fenced fragments, and the highest measured densities in mainland NZ [ 71 ]. Mice benefit from the removal of predators [ 72 ] and rats [ 73 ], with which they compete, and this effect was expected to be especially true in warmer forests of NZ [ 70 ].…”

Section: Barriers For Ballum Spillovermentioning

confidence: 99%

Of Mice, Cattle, and Men: A Review of the Eco-Epidemiology of Leptospira borgpetersenii Serovar Ballum

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In New Zealand (NZ), leptospirosis is a mostly occupational zoonosis, with >66% of the recently notified cases being farm or abattoir workers. Livestock species independently maintain Leptospira borgpetersenii serovar Hardjo and L. interrogans serovar Pomona, and both are included in livestock vaccines. The increasing importance in human cases of Ballum, a serovar associated with wildlife, suggests that wildlife may be an overlooked source of infection. Livestock could also act as bridge hosts for humans. Drawing from disease ecology frameworks, we chose five barriers to include in this review based on the hypothesis that cattle act as bridge hosts for Ballum. Using a narrative methodology, we collated published studies pertaining to (a) the distribution and abundance of potential wild maintenance hosts of Ballum, (b) the infection dynamics (prevalence and pathogenesis) in those same hosts, (c) Ballum shedding and survival in the environment, (d) the exposure and competency of cattle as a potential bridge host, and (e) exposure for humans as a target host of Ballum. Mice (Mus musculus), rats (Rattus rattus, R. norvegicus) and hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) were suspected as maintenance hosts of Ballum in NZ in studies conducted in the 1970s–1980s. These introduced species are distributed throughout NZ, and are present on pastures. The role of other wildlife in Ballum (and more broadly Leptospira) transmission remains poorly defined, and has not been thoroughly investigated in NZ. The experimental and natural Ballum infection of cattle suggest a low pathogenicity and the possibility of shedding. The seroprevalence in cattle appears higher in recent serosurveys (3 to 14%) compared with studies from the 1970s (0 to 3%). This review identifies gaps in the knowledge of Ballum, and highlights cattle as a potential spillover host. Further studies are required to ascertain the role that wild and domestic species may play in the eco-epidemiology of Ballum in order to understand its survival in the environment, and to inform control strategies.

show abstract

“…The literature suggests that adult birds that are incubating in confined cavities are less able to escape or defend themselves against nest predators (Elliott 1996;O'Donnell 1996), and nestlings in cavities may be more frequently predated (Massaro et al 2013). We therefore expected greater negative effects of cavity nesting on local occupancy where mammal predation pressure is higher, especially in New Zealand's warmer forests, where possum capture and ship rat tracking rates are consistently higher (Forsyth et al 2018;Walker et al 2019b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Life history traits explain vulnerability of endemic forest birds and predict recovery after predator suppression

Walker¹,

Monks²,

Innes³

2021

NZJE

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

New Zealand’s native forest bird species with high taxonomic levels of endemism (deep endemics) are more vulnerable to decline than species that arrived and speciated more recently. Here we use national-scale local occupancy data to show that three endemism-linked life-history traits account for greater vulnerability of deep-endemic species in the extant forest avifauna, but also that other, more subtle traits and mechanisms favour rather than hinder endemic persistence. We suggest that these traits together provide a basis for predicting changes in local occupancy following suppression of introduced mammalian predators in different landscapes. Our analyses disentangle the limiting effects of forest area, predation, and food availability for different species. They support understanding that predation by introduced mammals is the primary cause of forest bird declines and limitation today, but suggest that large tracts of native forest are essential for future restoration of endemic forest avifauna, even following suppression of introduced mammalian predators. We predict that with fewer predators (1) deep-endemic species would most successfully and rapidly recover in large tracts of warm forest, (2) scarcity of forest or food would limit recovery in larger-bodied, less mobile species and in mobile cavity-nesters, and (3) interspecific competition would become influential and produce community reassortment.

show abstract

Spatial patterns and drivers of invasive rodent dynamics in New Zealand forests

Cited by 26 publications

References 18 publications

Long‐term biodiversity trajectories for pest‐managed ecological restorations: eradication vs. suppression

Long‐term biodiversity trajectories for pest‐managed ecological restorations: eradication vs. suppression

Of Mice, Cattle, and Men: A Review of the Eco-Epidemiology of Leptospira borgpetersenii Serovar Ballum

Life history traits explain vulnerability of endemic forest birds and predict recovery after predator suppression

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About