Balčiauskas Linas, Stirkė Vitalijus, Balčiauskienė Laima
Nature Research Centre, Akademijos 2, LT-08412 Vilnius, Lithuania.
Life (Basel). 2023 Jan 29;13(2):375. doi: 10.3390/life13020375.
Fruit and berry farms are anthropogenic habitats still inhabited by small mammals, though their presence is constantly affected by agricultural activities. Based on trapping data from 2018-2022, we analyzed the abundance and population structure of the dominant rodent species to assess changes in gender and age ratios by year and habitat, the annual and seasonal dynamics of relative abundance, and the relationship between breeding parameters and abundance. The relative abundance of the dominant species, common vole, yellow-necked mouse, striped field mouse, and bank vole, and their proportion in the investigated community varied according to year, season, and habitat. No outbreaks were recorded during the study period. The abundance of the striped field mouse exhibited a downward trend independently of habitat, while the abundance and proportions of the other three species were habitat-dependent. There was no consistent pattern between litter size and relative abundance in the same or following years. Given the ongoing conflict between biodiversity conservation in Europe and agriculture, the results contribute to a better understanding of the functioning and viability of rodent populations in fruit farms and may be used in agroecology and sustainable farming.
水果和浆果农场是人为栖息地，仍有小型哺乳动物栖息其中，尽管它们的存在不断受到农业活动的影响。基于2018年至2022年的诱捕数据，我们分析了优势啮齿动物物种的丰度和种群结构，以评估性别和年龄比随年份和栖息地的变化、相对丰度的年度和季节动态，以及繁殖参数与丰度之间的关系。优势物种普通田鼠、黄颈姬鼠、条纹田鼠和棕背䶄的相对丰度及其在调查群落中的比例随年份、季节和栖息地而变化。研究期间未记录到种群爆发。条纹田鼠的丰度呈现出与栖息地无关的下降趋势，而其他三种物种的丰度和比例则依赖于栖息地。在同一年或次年，窝仔数与相对丰度之间没有一致的模式。鉴于欧洲生物多样性保护与农业之间持续存在的冲突，这些结果有助于更好地理解果园中啮齿动物种群的功能和生存能力，并可用于农业生态学和可持续农业。
