Habitat fragmentation and the population status of rodents in Abayum forest, Ikom, Cross River State, Nigeria (original) (raw)
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2010
A study on the species richness, abundance and habitat preference of rodents of Komto Protected Forest was carried out from July, 2009 to Feburary, 2010 encompassing both wet and dry seasons. The study investigates rodent species richness and their habitat preference in the study area. Furthermore, the role of different soil types associated with rodent habitat preference and abundance was also investigated. The study was carried out using Sherman live and snap traps in maize farm, grassland, bushland and forest habitats. A total of 312 individual rodents (live traps) and 66 (snap traps) were captured over 2352 and 1200 trap nights, respectively. The species composition and relative abundance were: Stenocephalemys albipes (48.4%), Lophuromys flavopunctatus (27.6%), Lemniscus. striatus (10.3%), Pelomys harringtoni (7.7%), Rattus rattus (5.1%) and Mus mahomet (0.9%). In addition, a shrew Crocidura flavescens was also captured. Mastomys natalensis and Arvicanthis species were absent which was unexpected as these species were most common in sub-Saharan Africa. Most of the rodent species preferred grassland and maize farm to bushland and forest. Bushland and forest habitats provided more number of individual rodents with few species. This is because environmental variables, for example, plant species composition might not favor all animals equally. Males comprised 52.9% and females 47.1% of the total capture. Among the total rodents captured, adults, subadults and juveniles comprised 60.6 %, 28.8% and 10.6%, respectively. Loamy soil formed the grassland and forest habitats, whereas the maize farm had sandy clay soil. Active or new burrows were not recorded in all habitats during the wet season. This might be a mechanism of avoiding the effect of flooding, and due to the presence of suffcient ground cover in wet season. However, during both seasons, new burrows or/and abandoned burrows were not recorded from grassland and forest habitats because of sufficient ground cover. Therefore, the effect of soil should be considered in ecological based rodent management in agricutural system.
The community structure of rodents and insectivores in the lowland tropical rainforest of Okomu National Park, Edo State, Nigeria was assessed using a combination of live-trapping and sighting techniques during the dry and wet seasons. Seventeen species (14 species of rodent, 3 species of insectivores) were captured, and 3 species (all rodents) were recorded as observed species. Of the total 737 individuals trapped, 680 individuals (92.3%) were rodents and 57 individuals (7.7%) were insectivores, with 185 individuals recaptured. The abundance of rodents and insectivores was significantly higher during the dry season than the wet season (p < 0.01). The Tullberg's softfurred mouse (Praomys tullbergi) was the most abundant species constituting 17.8% of the total number of captures, with the recapture of 38 individuals. The age composition of all captured small mammals varied significantly and between seasons. There was no significant difference in sex ratio for both seasons, however, males had higher capture frequency. This study suggests that seasonality tends to influence abundance and age structure of these small mammals, with no significant effect on their sex ratio. The rodent and insectivore species inhabiting the study area have a stable and thriving community, except for Atelerix albiventris.
Spatio-temporal home range of the dominant rodent species in Mabira central forest reserve, Uganda
Ssuuna James, 2023
Background Rodents form the largest order among mammals in terms of species diversity, and home range is the area where an individual normally moves during its normal daily activities. Information about rodent home ranges is paramount in the development of effective conservation and management strategies. This is because rodent home range varies within species and different habitats. In Uganda, tropical high altitude forests such as the Mabira Central Forest Reserve are experiencing continuous disturbance. However, information on rodent home range is lacking. Therefore, a two year Capture-Mark-Release (CMR) of rodents was conducted in the intact forest habitat: Wakisi, regenerating forest habitat: Namananga, and the depleted forest habitat: Namawanyi of Mabira Central Forest Reserve in order to determine the dominant rodent species, their home ranges, and factors affecting these home ranges. The home ranges were determined by calculating a minimum convex polygon with an added boundary strip of 5 m. (2023) 23:40 Conclusion The significant variation in home ranges of the dominant rodent species in Mabira Central Forest Reserve depending on the type of habitat presupposes that the rodent management strategies in disturbed forest reserves should focus on the type of habitat.
The small mammal community structure of the Moist Semi-Deciduous forest zone of the Amansie West District of the Ashanti Region of Ghana was studied. A total effort of 2,340 trap-nights yielded 201 individuals belonging to 11 rodents species (order Rodentia) and three shrew species (order Soricomorpha). Additionally, 13 rodent species belonging to five families, Thryonomidae (1 species), Cricetidae (1 species), Anomaluridae (3 species), Sciuridae (6 species) and Hystricidae (2 species) were observed via ad hoc walks. The relative abundance ranged from 1.9% for the OKF to 17.2% for the ORA. Small mammal diversity was highest and lowest at the PKF and OKF, respectively. The species comprised forest specialists and species adapted to habitats ranging from grassland to forest clearings. Two species, Lophuromys sikapusi, and Mus musculoides were common to all the sites, and together with Mastomys natalensis, constituted about 70% of the total number of captures. The fresh biomass of spec...
2013
The study investigated the effect of real estate development on small mammal diversity and abundance in order to inform town planners during their decision-making process. Small mammals were used because they are relatively easy to survey and serve as bio-indicators that provide knowledge on the state of health of the habitat in which they inhabit. The University of Ghana Campus, Legon (UGCL) was divided into two sites: built-up area and the botanical garden, which is less developed. The small mammals were live-trapped using Sherman traps in May 2009 for seven nights by means of transect in the two study sites, using a mixture of peanut butter and corn meal as the preferred bait. The 350 trap-nights yielded 68 captures of five species of small mammals. They were (i) Pygmy mouse (Mus musculoides), (ii) Unstriped grass rat (Arvicanthis niloticus), (iii) Tullberg’s soft-furred rat (Praomys tullbergi), (iv) African giant shrew (Crocidura olivieri) and (v) White-bellied hedgehog (Ateleri...
Wildlife Biology, 2023
A study aimed at assessing the structure of rodent and shrew assemblages inhabiting a degradation gradient while considering rainfall patterns, was conducted in one of few remaining lowland tropical forests in eastern Africa. We collected a unique dataset of rodents and shrews, representing 24 species (19 rodents, 5 shrews). The most abundant species alternated in dominance as species abundance significantly fluctuated across the study period following a degradation gradient. While only generalist species were observed near the degraded forest edge, habitat specialists such as Deomys ferrugineus, Malacomys longipes and Scutisorex congicus, were observed in the primary forest interior suggesting a significant association between species and their associated habitats and habitat attributes. There was also an observed correlation between rainfall patterns and species abundance. Capturing more species in adjacent fallows and along the degraded forest edge suggests that many species are able to live in degraded habitats that offer a variety of food resources. The study has highlighted the importance of habitat hetero-geneity through species associations and also recommend an assessment of the effect of habitat homogeneity due to the proliferation of paper mulberry on small mammal community.
Journal of Zoology, 2005
The small mammal fauna of a forest area in southern Nigeria is studied in order to understand the general patterns regulating the community composition. A set of different methods of trapping was used in order to evaluate the composition of the species at the level of both the ground-dwelling and the arboreal guilds. For the Insectivora, six shrew species were trapped, but only two (Crocidura nigeriae and C. poensis) appeared abundant and widespread in the various habitat types. No arboreal species were found. For the rodents, 17 species were captured, which were arranged by a Principal Component Analysis into four groups: (1) Rattus rattus and Anomalurus derbianus;
Diversity of Rodents (Rodentia: Mammalia) in the Kandolo Forest Reserve (Maniema Province, DR Congo)
2020
Our work entitled: Diversity of Rodents (Rodentia: Mammalia) in the Kandolo Forest Reserve (Maniema Province, DR Congo) aimed to assess the biodiversity of Rodents in the Kandolo Forest Reserve while comparing the specific diversity during two capture sessions and in the two prospected habitats (Mixed primary forest (FPM) and Gilbertiodendron dewevrei primary forest (FPG) Finally, assess the distribution of Rodents in the two habitats (FPG and FPM) prospected by sex. These objectives have been achieved. To achieve this, only one method was used in the field, the only in-line trapping using two types of traps including Sharmen and Pitfall. Two habitats were explored (primary mixed forest and primary forest at Gilbertiodendron dewevrei) during 2 capture sessions. After processing the data, the results presented 153 captured Rodents synthesized as follows: For a total of 153 individuals captured in the two habitats prospected during the two capture sessions, the first capture session c...
Diversity Patterns of Rodent Assemblages in the North of Fazao-Malfakassa National Park (Togo)
European Journal of Ecology
The rodent assemblages were studied in different habitat types in the northern part of the Fazao-Malfakassa National Park located in central-western Togo, West Africa. A suite of different methods was applied, including face-by-face interviews with local hunters, live trapping along standardized transects and opportunistic observations. A total of 20 rodent species were recorded based on the surveys carried out in villages, including 6 families and 17 genera. There was a clear gradient pattern in the univariate diversity indices by habitat type: Dominance index was remarkably higher in Urban/plantation than in the other habitat types whereas Evenness index was remarkably higher in gallery forest than in the other habitat types. According to a Canonical Correspondence Analysis, three “ecological groups” (= guilds) of species were formed: a group from wooded habitats (savannahs and semiforests), a group from grassy savannah and a group from urban/plantation habitats. Null model analys...