Mow the Grass at the Mouse’s Peril: Diversity of Small Mammals in Commercial Fruit Farms
Small mammals are not only pests but also an important part of agricultural ecosystems. The common vole is a reference species for risk assessment of plant protection products in the European Union, but no data about the suitability of the species in the Baltic countries are present so far. Using th...
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ftmdpi:oai:mdpi.com:/2076-2615/9/6/334/ 2023-08-20T04:05:58+02:00 Mow the Grass at the Mouse’s Peril: Diversity of Small Mammals in Commercial Fruit Farms Linas Balčiauskas Laima Balčiauskienė Vitalijus Stirkė agris 2019-06-08 application/pdf https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9060334 EN eng Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute Ecology and Conservation https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ani9060334 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Animals; Volume 9; Issue 6; Pages: 334 small mammals commercial fruit farms diversity dominance relative abundance agricultural practices Text 2019 ftmdpi https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9060334 2023-07-31T22:20:38Z Small mammals are not only pests but also an important part of agricultural ecosystems. The common vole is a reference species for risk assessment of plant protection products in the European Union, but no data about the suitability of the species in the Baltic countries are present so far. Using the snap-trap line method, we evaluated species composition, abundance, and diversity of small mammal communities in commercial orchards and berry plantations in Lithuania, testing the predictions that (i) compared with other habitats, small mammal diversity in fruit farms is low, and (ii) the common vole is the dominant species. The diversity of small mammals was compared with control habitats and the results of investigations in other habitats. Out of ten small mammal species registered, the most dominant were common vole and striped field mouse. Small mammal diversity and abundance increased in autumn and decreased in line with the intensity of agricultural practices but were not dependent on crop type. In the most intensively cultivated fruit farms, small mammals were not found. The diversity of small mammal communities in fruit farms was significantly higher than in crop fields and exceeded the diversities found in most types of forests except those in rapid succession. Text Common vole MDPI Open Access Publishing Animals 9 6 334 |
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MDPI Open Access Publishing |
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English |
topic |
small mammals commercial fruit farms diversity dominance relative abundance agricultural practices |
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small mammals commercial fruit farms diversity dominance relative abundance agricultural practices Linas Balčiauskas Laima Balčiauskienė Vitalijus Stirkė Mow the Grass at the Mouse’s Peril: Diversity of Small Mammals in Commercial Fruit Farms |
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small mammals commercial fruit farms diversity dominance relative abundance agricultural practices |
description |
Small mammals are not only pests but also an important part of agricultural ecosystems. The common vole is a reference species for risk assessment of plant protection products in the European Union, but no data about the suitability of the species in the Baltic countries are present so far. Using the snap-trap line method, we evaluated species composition, abundance, and diversity of small mammal communities in commercial orchards and berry plantations in Lithuania, testing the predictions that (i) compared with other habitats, small mammal diversity in fruit farms is low, and (ii) the common vole is the dominant species. The diversity of small mammals was compared with control habitats and the results of investigations in other habitats. Out of ten small mammal species registered, the most dominant were common vole and striped field mouse. Small mammal diversity and abundance increased in autumn and decreased in line with the intensity of agricultural practices but were not dependent on crop type. In the most intensively cultivated fruit farms, small mammals were not found. The diversity of small mammal communities in fruit farms was significantly higher than in crop fields and exceeded the diversities found in most types of forests except those in rapid succession. |
format |
Text |
author |
Linas Balčiauskas Laima Balčiauskienė Vitalijus Stirkė |
author_facet |
Linas Balčiauskas Laima Balčiauskienė Vitalijus Stirkė |
author_sort |
Linas Balčiauskas |
title |
Mow the Grass at the Mouse’s Peril: Diversity of Small Mammals in Commercial Fruit Farms |
title_short |
Mow the Grass at the Mouse’s Peril: Diversity of Small Mammals in Commercial Fruit Farms |
title_full |
Mow the Grass at the Mouse’s Peril: Diversity of Small Mammals in Commercial Fruit Farms |
title_fullStr |
Mow the Grass at the Mouse’s Peril: Diversity of Small Mammals in Commercial Fruit Farms |
title_full_unstemmed |
Mow the Grass at the Mouse’s Peril: Diversity of Small Mammals in Commercial Fruit Farms |
title_sort |
mow the grass at the mouse’s peril: diversity of small mammals in commercial fruit farms |
publisher |
Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute |
publishDate |
2019 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9060334 |
op_coverage |
agris |
genre |
Common vole |
genre_facet |
Common vole |
op_source |
Animals; Volume 9; Issue 6; Pages: 334 |
op_relation |
Ecology and Conservation https://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ani9060334 |
op_rights |
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3390/ani9060334 |
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Animals |
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9 |
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6 |
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334 |
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1774716808646885376 |