Dropping Boards for Population Studies of Small Mammals
1957; Wiley; Volume: 21; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
10.2307/3796549
ISSN1937-2817
AutoresJohn T. Emlen, Ruth L. Hine, W. A. Fuller, Pablo Alfonso,
Tópico(s)Morphological variations and asymmetry
ResumoMost estimates or indices of small-mammal abundance are based on trapping data or sign surveys. Trapping, either with live traps or kill traps, has many desirable features, but is expensive in time and effort and inevitably disturbing to the population. Sign surveys as used by Elton, Davis, and Findlay (1935) or Hayne (1950) avoid these difficulties but are less precise and more dependent on personal variables of skill and interpretation. A modification of the sign-survey technique which largely avoids these difficulties was suggested by Eadie (1948) in connection with a study of the food habits of shrews. To collect droppings of these animals, he distributed 4-inch squares of paper on the ground. Incidental to collection of shrew material he noted a high incidence of field mouse droppings on the squares and suggested that this technique might readily be developed to obtain relative census figures on certain small mammals under uniform conditions with a minimum disturbance to the animals and habitats. The present paper is a report on a series of studies evaluating the usefulness of dropping stations as a technique for population measurement and analysis of small mammals. The technique to be described involves the distribution of small squares of wood or other weather-resistant material
Referência(s)