Effects of cattle grazing on salt desert rodent communities
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Authors: A. L. Jones, and W. S. Longland
Date: 1999
Journal: The American Midland Naturalist
Volume: 141
Number: 1
Pages: 1-11
Summary of Methods: The effects of heavy and light grazing on nocturnal rodent composition and activity patterns were studied in northern Nevada. Each site had gradients of heavy to light grazing in relation to water locations. Rodents were sampled at sites along these use gradients for three consecutive nights per month from May-October. The number of months sampled varied. Vegetation cover, frequency and density were sampled from June-July of the first year. Habitat use was recorded using seed stations covered with fluorescent powder.
Article Summary / Main Points: Of the eleven rodent species captured only the four most frequent species (Ammospermophilus leucurus, Dipodomys merriami, D. microp, and Perognathus longimembris) at all three sites were analyzed. Of these four species Dipodomys merriami were more abundant in heavily grazed areas, while Perognathus longimembris favored lightly grazed areas. The habitat selection showed that open habitats (heavier grazed sites) were preferred by Dipodomys species while Perognathus species occupy more vegetated and lightly grazed sites. The maximum range of rodents was also greater in heavily grazed areas due to reduced resource availability and open habitat.
Vegetation Types: Salt Desert Shrublands
MLRA Ecoregions: 27 Fallon-Lovelock Area
Agrovoc Control Words: Grazing Rangelands Rodents
Article Review Type: Refereed
Article Type: Experimental Research
Keywords: dipodomys merriami, perognathus longimembris, great basin desert microhabitat, grazing
Annotation: This replicated study conducted over two years and its associated results applies to desert communities where grazing effects rodent diversity and abundance. The results of the study would be stronger if a control site (no grazing) had been measured and if rodent use throughout the day had been studied, instead of focusing on nocturnal species. The occurrence of the Hetermydae group (including Dipodomys species) as a whole was found to be higher on grazed sites in this study in southeast Arizona and in a study by Jones et al. (2003, Amer. Mid. Nat. 149:384-394) in the Salt Desert Shrubland of the Great Basin, while Perognathus preferred lightly grazed areas in both studies .
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