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Cronin JP, Tirpak BE, Dale LL, Robenski VL, Tirpak JM, Marcot BG. Strategic Habitat Conservation for Beach Mice: Estimating Management Scenario Efficiencies. J Wildl Manage 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.21983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- James Patrick Cronin
- U.S. Geological Survey Wetland and Aquatic Research Center 700 Cajundome Blvd Lafayette LA 70506 USA
| | - Blair E. Tirpak
- U.S. Geological Survey Wetland and Aquatic Research Center 700 Cajundome Blvd Lafayette LA 70506 USA
| | - Leah L. Dale
- Cherokee Nation Technology Solutions, contracted to the U.S. Geological Survey Wetland and Aquatic Research Center 700 Cajundome Blvd Lafayette LA 70506 USA
| | - Virginia L. Robenski
- Cherokee Nation Technology Solutions, contracted to the U.S. Geological Survey Wetland and Aquatic Research Center 700 Cajundome Blvd Lafayette LA 70506 USA
| | - John M. Tirpak
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 700 Cajundome Blvd Lafayette LA 70506 USA
| | - Bruce G. Marcot
- U.S. Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station 620 S.W. Main Street, Suite 502 Portland OR 97205 USA
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Differentiating Footprints of Sympatric Rodents in Coastal Dune Communities: Implications for Imperiled Beach Mice. JOURNAL OF FISH AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT 2018. [DOI: 10.3996/062018-jfwm-055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Identifying techniques for conducting frequent, effective, and inexpensive monitoring of small mammals can be challenging. Traditional approaches such as livetrapping can be laborious, expensive, detrimental to animal health, and ineffective. Passive approaches such as tracking (e.g., from tracks on the ground or footprints collected at a tracking station) have been shown to lessen those burdens, but a problem with tracking, particularly for rodents, is the uncertainty in identifying species from footprints. To address the need for a more accurate method of identifying small mammal tracks, we measured footprints from live-captured rodents and developed a classification tree for distinguishing between subspecies and species using footprint widths treated as having known or unknown identification. We captured rodents within or near the coastal dunes of Florida and Alabama with a focus on areas occupied by threatened and endangered beach mice Peromyscus polionotus subspp., whose populations warrant regular monitoring but whose tracks are not easily distinguished from those of some sympatric species. We measured 6,996 front and hind footprints from 540 individuals across eight species. The overall accuracy of our classification tree was 82.6% and we achieved this using only the front footprint width. Footprint width cutoffs for species identification were < 5.5 mm for house mice Mus musculus, 5.5–6.7 mm for beach mice, and 6.7–8.3 mm for cotton mice Peromyscus gossypinus. We were most successful in confirming the identity of beach mice: we correctly classified approximately 94% of beach mice, while we misclassified fewer than 6% as house mice and fewer than 1% as cotton mice. When we input a beach mouse individual into the classification tree as of an unknown species, we correctly identified 78.1% of individuals as beach mice from their tracks, and most incorrect identifications were of house mouse tracks. Our study demonstrates that researchers can identify sympatric rodent species in coastal dune communities from tracks using quantitative classification based on footprint width. Accurate identification of beach mice or other imperiled species from tracks has important management implications. Not only can wildlife managers determine the presence of a species accurately, but they can monitor populations with considerably less effort than livetrapping requires. Although our study was specific to coastal dune communities, our methods could be adapted for the creation of a classification tree for identifying tracks from suites of species in other areas.
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Greene DU, Gore JA, Austin JD. Reintroduction of captive-born beach mice: the importance of demographic and genetic monitoring. J Mammal 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/jmammal/gyw229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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Austin JD, Gore JA, Greene DU, Gotteland C. Conspicuous genetic structure belies recent dispersal in an endangered beach mouse (Peromyscus polionotus trissyllepsis). CONSERV GENET 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s10592-015-0710-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Germano DJ, Saslaw LR, Smith PT, Cypher BL. Survivorship and reproduction of translocated Tipton kangaroo rats in the San Joaquin Valley, California. ENDANGER SPECIES RES 2013. [DOI: 10.3354/esr00470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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Wood DJA, Koprowski JL, Lurz PWW. Tree Squirrel Introduction: A Theoretical Approach with Population Viability Analysis. J Mammal 2007. [DOI: 10.1644/06-mamm-a-303.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
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Population Dynamics of Alabama Beach Mice (Peromyscus polionotus ammobates) following Hurricane Opal. AMERICAN MIDLAND NATURALIST 1998. [DOI: 10.1674/0003-0031(1998)140[0287:pdoabm]2.0.co;2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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