Influences of pine plantations on small mammal assemblages of the Patagonian forest-steppe ecotone
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María Victoria Lantschner
,
Verónica Rusch
Abstract
The management of forested landscapes for biodiversity conservation is increasingly recognized as an important objective in Argentina. However, pine plantations are being established replacing native pristine or human modified vegetation and there is a lack of information of its impact on biodiversity. To understand the effect of this activity on small mammal assemblages, we compared its composition and abundance in pine plantations and native vegetation dedicated to traditional cattle production and studied the habitat structure that could explain the differences between habitat types. Additionally, we evaluated the role of firebreaks as corridors in forested landscapes. We found lower abundance and fewer species in plantations. Firebreaks showed a lower abundance and number of species than native vegetation, suggesting that they do not function effectively as corridors. Abrothrix longipilis was the most frequently captured species and abundance of this species was best explained by herbaceous cover and shrub richness. Our results suggest that pine plantations negatively impacts small mammal assemblages and that the decline is strongly associated with decreased understory cover and plant species richness. Management practices targeting conservation objectives such as maintaining lower tree densities and retention of native understory could enhance the value of forest plantations as habitat for small mammal species.
©2011 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin Boston
Articles in the same Issue
- Original Studies
- Resources partitioning in a fruit bat community of the southern Atlantic Forest, Brazil
- Current and potential distribution of Myotis simus (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae)
- Diurnal time budget of goitred gazelles (Gazella subgutturosa Güldenstaedt, 1780) in Xinjiang, China
- Sex ratios of Arabian Sand Gazelle Gazella marica Thomas, 1897 in the Mahazat as-Sayd Protected Area, Saudi Arabia
- Influences of pine plantations on small mammal assemblages of the Patagonian forest-steppe ecotone
- Assessing mammal distribution and abundance in intricate eastern Himalayan habitats of Khangchendzonga, Sikkim, India
- Rhipidomys (Rodentia, Cricetidae) from Paraguay: noteworthy new records and identity of the Paraguayan species
- Observations of the woolly flying squirrel Eupetaurus cinereus in Pakistan
- Observations on the captive behavior of the rare Patagonian opossum Lestodelphys halli (Thomas, 1921) (Marsupialia, Didelphimorphia, Didelphidae)
- Short Notes
- Use of space by the black-eared opossum Didelphis aurita in a rural area in southeastern Brazil
- New records of bats for the state of Minas Gerais, with range extension of Eptesicus chiriquinus Thomas (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) to southeastern Brazil
- First records of mormoopid bats (Chiroptera, Mormoopidae) from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest
- Long-term adult male sociality in ring-tailed coatis (Nasua nasua)
- Approach on the genetic diversity in a Lusitanian pine vole population
Articles in the same Issue
- Original Studies
- Resources partitioning in a fruit bat community of the southern Atlantic Forest, Brazil
- Current and potential distribution of Myotis simus (Chiroptera, Vespertilionidae)
- Diurnal time budget of goitred gazelles (Gazella subgutturosa Güldenstaedt, 1780) in Xinjiang, China
- Sex ratios of Arabian Sand Gazelle Gazella marica Thomas, 1897 in the Mahazat as-Sayd Protected Area, Saudi Arabia
- Influences of pine plantations on small mammal assemblages of the Patagonian forest-steppe ecotone
- Assessing mammal distribution and abundance in intricate eastern Himalayan habitats of Khangchendzonga, Sikkim, India
- Rhipidomys (Rodentia, Cricetidae) from Paraguay: noteworthy new records and identity of the Paraguayan species
- Observations of the woolly flying squirrel Eupetaurus cinereus in Pakistan
- Observations on the captive behavior of the rare Patagonian opossum Lestodelphys halli (Thomas, 1921) (Marsupialia, Didelphimorphia, Didelphidae)
- Short Notes
- Use of space by the black-eared opossum Didelphis aurita in a rural area in southeastern Brazil
- New records of bats for the state of Minas Gerais, with range extension of Eptesicus chiriquinus Thomas (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) to southeastern Brazil
- First records of mormoopid bats (Chiroptera, Mormoopidae) from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest
- Long-term adult male sociality in ring-tailed coatis (Nasua nasua)
- Approach on the genetic diversity in a Lusitanian pine vole population
