Methods for large scale assessment of small mammal abundance in open habitats: plateau pika (Ochotona curzoniae) in Alpine grassland

• Autorzy: Qu J. , Li W. , Yang M. , Li K. , Zhang Y.
• Języki publikacji: EN

Abstrakty

EN

Quick and accurate estimation of population density in large scale is required in both scientific studies and wildlife management programs. However, effective estimation of small mammal abundance is usually difficult and timeconsuming due to the body size and wide distribution of these animals. To test the efficiency of different methods in assessing small mammal densities, population dynamics of plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae, Hodgson) were studied from April 2005 to August 2009 in alpine grassland (Kobresia humilis) at a height of of 3846 m a.s.l. We compared the precision of walked transects method with mark-recapture method using Efford’s maximum likelihood spatial estimator (ML). Significant positive correlation was found between walked transects and Efford’s ML estimator (r2 = 0.58, P <0.001). The densities calculated with walked transects were about twice lower than those obtained using the mark-recapture method over the study period (i.e., summer). Nevertheless, the walked transects method remains useful for relative density estimation. Hence, the walked transects method is recommended for use as an index of relative density in large-scale assessment in alpine grassland where most small mammals are active and easily detected in an open habitat.

Słowa kluczowe

EN

density estimation; Ochotona curzoniae; Alpine grassland; small mammal; population density; plateau pika; wildlife population; large scale assessment; open habitat

• Wydawca: -
• Czasopismo: Polish Journal of Ecology
• Rocznik: 2011
• Tom: 59
• Numer: 4
• Opis fizyczny: p.829-833,fig.,ref.

Twórcy

autor

Qu J.

• Key Laboratory of Adaptation and Evolution of Plateau Biota, Northwest Institute of Plateau Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xining, Qinghai, 810001, China

autor

Li W.

autor

Yang M.

autor

Li K.

autor

Zhang Y.

Bibliografia

• Arthur A.D., Pech R.P., Davey C., Zhang Y.M., Lin H. 2008 – Livestock grazing, plateau pikas and the conservation of avian biodiversity on the Tibetan plateau – Biol. Conserv. 141: 1972–1981.
• Bardsen B.J., Fox J.L. 2006 – Evaluation of line transect sampling for density estimates of chiru Pantholops hodgsoni in the Aru Basin, Tibet – Wildlife Biol. 12: 89–100.
• Bryja J., Tkadlec E., Nesvadbova J., Gaisler J., Zejda J. 2001 – Comparison of enumeration and Jolly-Seber estimation of population size in the common vole Microtus arvalis – Acta Theriol. 46: 279–285.
• Borchers D.L., Efford M.G. 2008 – Spatially explicit maximum likelihood methods for capture-recapture studies – Biometrics, 64: 377–385.
• Bunkland S.T., Anderson D.R., Burnham K.P., Laake J. ., Borchers D.L., Thomas L. 2004 – Introduction to advanced distance sampling: estimating abundance of biologicalpopulations – Oxford University Press, New York, 102 pp.
• Calambokidis J., Barlow J. 2004 – Abundance of blue and humpback whales in the eastern North Pacific estimated by capturerecapture and line-transect methods – Mar. Mammal Sci. 20: 63–85.
• Chen J., Wang Z.Q., Wang Y., Li B., Zha X., Luo S.D.W., Zhang M.W. 2008 – Methods for investigating the density of plateau pika in Northern Tibetan Plateau – Plant Protection, 34: 114–117 (in Chinese).
• Efford M. 2004 – Density estimation in livetrapping studies – Oikos, 106: 598–610.
• Eguchi T., Gerrodette T. 2009 – A Bayesian approach to line-transect analysis for estimating abundance – Ecol. Model. 220: 1620–1630.
• Forys E.A., Humphrey S.R. 1997 – Comparison of 2 Methods to Estimate Density of an Endangered Lagomorph – J. Wildlife Manage. 61: 86–92.
• Horne B.V., Schooley R.L., Knick S.T., Olson G.S., Burnham K.P. 1997 – Use of burrow entrances to indicate densities of townsend’s ground squirrels – J. Wildlife Manage. 61: 92–101.
• Pech R.P., Arthur A.D., Zhang Y.M., Lin H. 2007 – Population dynamics and responses to management of plateau pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) – J. Appl. Ecol. 44: 615–624.
• Plumptre A.J. 2000 – Monitoring mammal populations with line transect techniques in African forests – J. Appl. Ecol. 37: 356–368.
• Ruscoe W.A., Goldsmith R., Choquenot D. 2001 – A comparison of population estimates and abundance indices for house mice inhabiting beech forests in New Zealand – Wildlife Res. 28: 173–178.
• Smith A.T., Wang X.G. 1991 – Social relationships of adult black-lipped pikas (Ochotona curzoniae) – J. Mammal. 72: 231–247.