Habitat use by three rat species (Rattus spp.) on Stewart Island/ Rakiura, New Zealand
نویسندگان
چکیده
The relative abundance of ship rats (Rattus rattus), Norway rats (R. norvegicus), and Pacific rats (R. exulans), was measured in four vegetation types on Stewart Island/Rakiura, over six consecutive seasons. Ship rats were found in all four vegetation types and dominated in podocarp-broadleaf forest and riparian shrubland. Norway rats were most common in subalpine shrubland and Pacific rats dominated in manuka (Leptospermum scoparium) shrubland. Analysis of micro-habitat affinities for the three species showed that ship rats were habitat generalists. Norway rats were associated with plants of damp sites. Pacific rats showed a significant positive relationship with increasing amounts of the ground cover wire rush, (Empodisma minus). Reasons for the observed habitat use on Stewart Island could include physiological adaptation to cold and wet conditions in Norway rats; the avoidance of predation or inter-specific competition by Pacific rats; and possibly preference for more structurally complex vegetation types by ship rats. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
منابع مشابه
Habitat use by three rat species (Rattus spp.) on an island without other mammalian predators
Ship rats (Rattus rattus) were removed from sites on Pearl Island, southern Stewart Island, in 2004 and 2005, to test whether they excluded Pacific rats (R. exulans) or Norway rats (R. norvegicus) or both from podocarp-broadleaf forest. As predators can influence habitat use in rodents, Pearl Island was selected because no mammalian predators of rodents are present. Rats were trapped in two oth...
متن کاملA Survey of the Distribution, Seasonal Activity and Roost Sites of New Zealand Bats
The lesser short-tailed bat (Mystacina t. tuberculata) has been found in 18 locations in indigenous forest in North Island since 1961, mainly in Northland kauri forest (including Little Barrier Island), on the volcanic plateau (including Tongariro National Park), Urewera National Park and in Tararua Range. In South Island this bat has only been reported once since 1961, in North West Nelson For...
متن کاملNew Lepidium (Brassicaceae) from New Zealand
A revision of the New Zealand endemic Lepidium oleraceum and allied species is presented. Sixteen species are recognised, 10 of these are new. The new species are segregated on the basis of morphological characters supported by molecular data obtained from three DNA markers (two rDNA and one cpDNA). One species, Lepidium castellanum sp. nov., is endemic to the Kermadec Islands where it is sympa...
متن کاملInvasive rats and recent colonist birds partially compensate for the loss of endemic New Zealand pollinators.
Reported declines of pollinator populations around the world have led to increasing concerns about the consequences for pollination as a critical ecosystem function and service. Pollination could be maintained through compensation if remaining pollinators increase their contribution or if novel species are recruited as pollinators, but empirical evidence of this compensation is so far lacking. ...
متن کاملPoisoning Rats on Stewart Island
Poison was used at remote anchorages of southern Stewart Island in spring and summer of 1984/85 to reduce the likelihood of ship rats (Rattus rattus), Norway rats (R. norvegicus) and kiore (R. exulans) boarding fishing boats heading for the Snares Islands. Poison baits were removed at successively slower rates, probably because poisoning had reduced rat numbers. The effectiveness of poisoning w...
متن کامل