Somogyi Múzeumok Közleményei 18. (Kaposvár, 2008)

HORVÁTH GYŐZŐ, ORBÁN ESZTER ÉVA, FUTÓ KINGA, SÁRFI NIKOLETTA, KARDOS ROLAND, SOÓS NÁNDOR & SÁRKÁNY HENRIK: Kisemlősök mikro-élőhely asszociáltsága védett zárt erdőben és újraerdősödő élőhelyen

Micorhabitat association of small mammals in protected forest and reforested habitat GYŐZŐ HORVÁTH, ESZTER ÉVA ORBÁN, KINGA FUTÓ, NIKOLETTA SÁRFI, ROLAND KARDOS, NÁNDOR SOÓS & HENRIK SÁRKÁNY Forest felling and successive artificial reforestation cause significant physiognomic changes to forest plant asociations. These interventions have an impact on the composition of small mammal communities as well, influencing the variations of abundance and dominance within the community. Most of the small mammal species inhabiting Central-European deciduous forests are generalists and thus are capable of switching rapidly between the habitats they use. Our research was performed in Lankóci forest in a protected and in a neighbouring reforested habitat. Microhabitat association between character species was investigated using discriminant analysis. The spatial pattern of the four character species (Apodemus agrárius, Apodemus flavicollis, Clethrionomys glareolus, Microtus subterraneus) was determined partly by different coverages at various layers of the vegetation and partly by the temporal changes of small mammal populations. Based on the results of discriminant analysis the segregation of the species was observed along three axes, mostly determined by plant coverage differences between the upper canopy (6 m <), and vegetation layers of 1-2 m and 2-4 m height. In the space use of yellow-necked wood mouse and bank vole, the presence of fallen tree trunks and logs played an important role.