Road-related landscape elements as a habitat: A main asset for small mammals in an intensive farming landscape |
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| Institution: | 1. Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, IPHC UMR 7178, F-67000 Strasbourg, France;2. Conseil Départemental du Bas-Rhin, Place du quartier blanc, 67964 Strasbourg Cedex 9, France;3. Université de Rennes 1, CNRS, UMR 6553 Ecobio, 35042 Rennes Cedex, France;1. Agenzia Forestas, Servizio Tecnico, Viale Merello n. 86, 09124, Cagliari, Italy;2. Institute for Development, Ecology, Conservation and Cooperation, via G. Tomasi di Lampedusa 33, I-00144 Rome, Italy;3. Niger Delta Ecology and Biodiversity Conservation Unit, Department of Applied and Environmental Biology, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, PMB 5080, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria;4. CNR – Istituto per lo Studio degli Ecosistemi, Roma, Italy;1. Institute of Soil Bioengineering and Landscape Construction, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, Austria;2. Institute of Botany, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Gregor-Mendel-Straße 33, 1180 Vienna, Austria;1. Department of Game Management and Wildlife Biology, Faculty of Forestry and Wood Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6, Suchdol, Czech Republic;2. Department of Applied Ecology, Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 21 Praha 6, Suchdol, Czech Republic;1. University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Foundation, Institute for Terrestrial and Aquatic Wildlife Research, Bischofsholer Damm 15, 30173 Hannover, Germany;2. Hunting Association of Lower Saxony, Schopenhauerstraße 21, 30625 Hannover, Germany;3. Action for Otter Conservation, Otter-Centre, Sudendorfallee 1, 29386 Hankensbüttel, Germany |
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| Abstract: | Road construction creates new habitats for a variety of species. In intensive farming landscapes, road verges may be the only suitable habitat for rodents. However, little attention has been paid to other road-related landscape elements (RRLEs), such as excavation slopes or the central islands of roundabouts, and their importance in a rodent territory. This study investigated all types of RRLE in terms of rodent abundances and habitat quality. RRLEs were compared with the semi-natural elements of the studied landscape using a capture-mark-recapture protocol. Four species and 3154 individuals were captured over a period of four months. Relative abundance and habitat quality were higher in RRLEs than in semi-natural elements. Mapping of the landscape showed that 86% of crop fields are accessible to Microtus arvalis (and almost 100% for Apodemus sylvaticus) from road verges. Our results highlight the importance of road verges and all other RRLEs in the conservation of species diversity in intensive farming landscapes. |
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| Keywords: | Road verges Road ecology Motorway Capture-mark-recapture |
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