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EFFECTS OF EASTERN REDCEDAR ON SMALL MAMMAL COMMUNITY STRUCTURE IN THE OKLAHOMA CROSSTIMBERS
Citation:
Horncastle, V. J., D. Leslie, E. C. Hellgren, AND P. M. Mayer*. EFFECTS OF EASTERN REDCEDAR ON SMALL MAMMAL COMMUNITY STRUCTURE IN THE OKLAHOMA CROSSTIMBERS. Presented at 50th Annual Conf. of the SW Assn. of Naturalists, Norman, OK, April 19, 2003.
Impact/Purpose:
To inform the public.
Description:
Increased abundance of eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginianus), a native but invasive species in the Great Plains, has been associated with reduced herbaceous biomass in the canopy zone, altered plant species composition, and reduced understory light and soil water content. By altering the landscape and local vegetation, cedar likely is changing the suitability of habitat for small mammals. We examined effects of eastern redcedar invasion on small mammals in tallgrass prairie, old-field invaded by cedar, and crosstimbers forest habitats. Small mammals were sampled seasonally from May 2001 to August 2002 using Sherman live traps and mark-recapture techniques. The structure of the small-mammal community differed among the 3 habitat types, with higher species diversity and richness in the tallgrass prairie and cedar old-field sites. In the tallgrass prairie site, all prairie species were correlated negatively with cover of cedar; only one woodland species, the white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus), was correlated positively with cedar. In the cedar old-field site, 3 of 4 species were associated with eastern redcedar; prairie species were correlated negatively and the white-footed mouse was positively associated with cedar. In the crosstimbers forest site, percent woody cover (< 1 m in height) was the most important factor affecting woodland species. Overall, the small-mammal assemblage shifted along a gradient of increasing eastern redcedar. In the cedar old-field and tallgrass prairie plots, most grassland species decreased with increasing cedar, whereas only one woodland species increased. Conservation of small prairie mammals will depend on controlling encroachment of eastern redcedar.