Document: DAV-3-52-5

Positive effects of clearcutting on deer mouse demography leads to increased trillium seed predation.

TALLMON, D.A.* 1, N.RADKE 1, L.S.MILLS 1 and E.S.JULES 2

University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812 USA 1
Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA 95521 USA 2

Abstract:
We have found that forest fragmentation leads to increased abundance of deer mice Peromyscus maniculatus on a landscape scale in our southwest Oregon study sites. Deer mice are much more common in clearcuts than in forests and show decreased abundance from the forest/clearcut edge toward the interior of forest fragments. Within clearcuts, Trillium ovatum seed predation was much greater in areas of higher mouse use than areas of low mouse use and trillium seed predation was correlated with capture rate of mice across 11 clearcut transects. The changes in mouse abundance that accompany the conversion of forest to clearcuts may lead to the near absence of trillium recruitment in clearcuts found previously. Further, the positive effects timber harvest practices have on deer mouse abundance may alter succession patterns by affecting recruitment in other plant species.

Keywords: demography, deer mouse, trillium, seed predation

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This abstract is being presented at: 11:00 AM in session:
Oral Session #21: Small Mammal Population Ecology.