Influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( Lemmus trimucronatus) in the High Arctic
Abstract Space use by small mammals should mirror their immediate needs for food and predator shelters but can also be influenced by seasonal changes in biotic and abiotic factors. Lemmings are keystone species of the tundra food web, but information on their spatial distribution in relation to habi...
Published in: | Journal of Mammalogy |
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2024
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae069 https://academic.oup.com/jmammal/article-pdf/105/5/1141/59156986/gyae069.pdf |
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croxfordunivpr:10.1093/jmammal/gyae069 2024-10-13T14:05:31+00:00 Influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( Lemmus trimucronatus) in the High Arctic Valcourt, Marianne Fauteux, Dominique Gauthier, Gilles Flaherty, Elizabeth Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada ArcticNet Network of Centers of excellence Sentinel North program of the Canada First Research Excellence Fund Northern Scientific Training Program of Polar Knowledge Canada Canadian North 2024 http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae069 https://academic.oup.com/jmammal/article-pdf/105/5/1141/59156986/gyae069.pdf en eng Oxford University Press (OUP) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ Journal of Mammalogy volume 105, issue 5, page 1141-1150 ISSN 0022-2372 1545-1542 journal-article 2024 croxfordunivpr https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae069 2024-10-01T04:03:47Z Abstract Space use by small mammals should mirror their immediate needs for food and predator shelters but can also be influenced by seasonal changes in biotic and abiotic factors. Lemmings are keystone species of the tundra food web, but information on their spatial distribution in relation to habitat heterogeneity is still scant, especially at a fine scale. In this study, we used spatially explicit capture–recapture methods to determine how topography, hydrology, vegetation, and soil characteristics influence the fine-scale spatial variations in summer density of brown lemmings (Lemmus trimucronatus). Lemmings were monitored throughout the summer in wet and mesic tundra habitats and in a predator exclusion grid, which was also located in mesic tundra. We found that in wet tundra, lemming densities were higher at sites with a rugged topography dominated by hummocks, but only during snow melt. In both mesic tundra sites, lemming densities were higher in sites with poor drainage and low aspect throughout the summer. We found no clear association between lemming densities and any tested vegetation or soil variables. Overall, hydrology and topography appear to play a dominant role in small-scale space use of brown lemmings with a secondary role for predator avoidance and food plant abundance. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Lemmus trimucronatus Tundra Oxford University Press Arctic Journal of Mammalogy |
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Open Polar |
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Oxford University Press |
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croxfordunivpr |
language |
English |
description |
Abstract Space use by small mammals should mirror their immediate needs for food and predator shelters but can also be influenced by seasonal changes in biotic and abiotic factors. Lemmings are keystone species of the tundra food web, but information on their spatial distribution in relation to habitat heterogeneity is still scant, especially at a fine scale. In this study, we used spatially explicit capture–recapture methods to determine how topography, hydrology, vegetation, and soil characteristics influence the fine-scale spatial variations in summer density of brown lemmings (Lemmus trimucronatus). Lemmings were monitored throughout the summer in wet and mesic tundra habitats and in a predator exclusion grid, which was also located in mesic tundra. We found that in wet tundra, lemming densities were higher at sites with a rugged topography dominated by hummocks, but only during snow melt. In both mesic tundra sites, lemming densities were higher in sites with poor drainage and low aspect throughout the summer. We found no clear association between lemming densities and any tested vegetation or soil variables. Overall, hydrology and topography appear to play a dominant role in small-scale space use of brown lemmings with a secondary role for predator avoidance and food plant abundance. |
author2 |
Flaherty, Elizabeth Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada ArcticNet Network of Centers of excellence Sentinel North program of the Canada First Research Excellence Fund Northern Scientific Training Program of Polar Knowledge Canada Canadian North |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Valcourt, Marianne Fauteux, Dominique Gauthier, Gilles |
spellingShingle |
Valcourt, Marianne Fauteux, Dominique Gauthier, Gilles Influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( Lemmus trimucronatus) in the High Arctic |
author_facet |
Valcourt, Marianne Fauteux, Dominique Gauthier, Gilles |
author_sort |
Valcourt, Marianne |
title |
Influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( Lemmus trimucronatus) in the High Arctic |
title_short |
Influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( Lemmus trimucronatus) in the High Arctic |
title_full |
Influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( Lemmus trimucronatus) in the High Arctic |
title_fullStr |
Influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( Lemmus trimucronatus) in the High Arctic |
title_full_unstemmed |
Influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( Lemmus trimucronatus) in the High Arctic |
title_sort |
influence of habitat on fine-scale space use by brown lemmings ( lemmus trimucronatus) in the high arctic |
publisher |
Oxford University Press (OUP) |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae069 https://academic.oup.com/jmammal/article-pdf/105/5/1141/59156986/gyae069.pdf |
geographic |
Arctic |
geographic_facet |
Arctic |
genre |
Arctic Lemmus trimucronatus Tundra |
genre_facet |
Arctic Lemmus trimucronatus Tundra |
op_source |
Journal of Mammalogy volume 105, issue 5, page 1141-1150 ISSN 0022-2372 1545-1542 |
op_rights |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1093/jmammal/gyae069 |
container_title |
Journal of Mammalogy |
_version_ |
1812811602541412352 |