Advances in Diversity and Conservation of Terrestrial Small Mammals—2nd Edition

A special issue of Diversity (ISSN 1424-2818). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Diversity".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2024 | Viewed by 3786

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Faculty of Sciences, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Bulevardul Victoriei 10, 550024 Sibiu, Romania
Interests: small mammals; population ecology; habitat selection; population dynamics; inter- and intraspecific competition; ecological statistics; multivariate analysis; fleas
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Guest Editor
Laboratory of Mammalian Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Akademijos 2, 08412 Vilnius, Lithuania
Interests: hoofed, semi-aquatic, carnivore and small mammal ecology; threatened and invasive mammal species; large carnivores; spatial distribution; population management and computer modeling; biodiversity and ecological diversity
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Rodents (order Rodentia) represent the most diverse group of mammals, constituting about 40% of the extant species and being found in vast numbers on all continents (except Antarctica), inhabiting a great variety of environments. Together with insectivores (order Eulipotyphla and order Afrosoricida), rodents are key components of terrestrial ecosystems, where they have multiple functions, acting as seed and fungus dispersers, soil aerators and bioturbators, predators of insects and other invertebrates and, most importantly, as a food resource for most vertebrate predators. Resultantly, they exercise direct and indirect top-down and bottom-up control of the distribution, abundance and population dynamics of other animal taxa, as well as influencing vegetation structure. Intensification of anthropogenic habitat and climate alteration poses increased threat to the diversity of small mammals at all scales, resulting in impoverished assemblages dominated by generalist, sometimes invasive, species with limited functions in ecosystems, and therefore requiring efficient conservation measures and strategies.

This Special Issue invites research papers focusing on the diversity of terrestrial small mammals at various scales, from population (genetic diversity, mainly of rare or endemic species) to community (species richness and assemblage heterogeneity) and landscape (beta and gamma diversity) levels, and especially the relationships between the structural and functional diversity within this group. We also welcome new research and advances in small mammal conservation, papers presenting novel methods used to preserve threatened species and to enhance declining diversity at the various levels, as well as new policies and assessments of species’ threats and conservation statuses.

Dr. Ana Maria Benedek
Dr. Linas Balčiauskas
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • rodents
  • insectivores
  • species richness
  • alpha, beta and gamma diversity patterns
  • functional diversity
  • genetic diversity
  • climate change
  • habitat degradation
  • commensal habitats and adaptations
  • conservation biology
  • damage and pathogens
  • mitigation
  • red lists

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

14 pages, 2742 KiB  
Article
Long-Term Stability of Harvest Mouse Population
by Linas Balčiauskas and Laima Balčiauskienė
Diversity 2023, 15(10), 1102; https://doi.org/10.3390/d15101102 - 23 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3298
Abstract
The Eurasian harvest mouse (Micromys minutus) is a tiny rodent of the Palearctic and Indomalayan regions, with a distinct regional species status in Europe and irregularly varying local numbers. We analysed the population of M. minutus in Lithuania (Northern Europe) based [...] Read more.
The Eurasian harvest mouse (Micromys minutus) is a tiny rodent of the Palearctic and Indomalayan regions, with a distinct regional species status in Europe and irregularly varying local numbers. We analysed the population of M. minutus in Lithuania (Northern Europe) based on trapping data from 1975 to 2022 and owl pellet data from 1986 to 2009. Based on both datasets, the proportion of this species in the small mammal community was similar, 1.13% and 0.62%, respectively. The proportions have remained stable across all decades. Relative abundance was 1.19 ± 0.19 individuals per 1000 trap days, stable over the long term and across the country. Irregular fluctuations in abundance were observed in some of the sites surveyed. The highest average RA was recorded in open sedge habitats, meadows and marshes. The absolute highest RA was 88 individuals per 1000 trap days in floodplain meadows after a major flood. Although the negative impact of habitat anthropogenisation has been confirmed, M. minutus does not require special conservation measures in Lithuania. Full article
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