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Low population density and biology of an island population of house mice Mus musculus on South Georgia

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Abstract

South Georgia has been the southernmost location where populations of invasive house mice Mus musculus are found. The distribution of mice was investigated at Cape Rosa and the Nuñez Peninsula, the two areas of South Georgia where the species is known to occur. Live-trapping and kill-trapping took place during March 2012, at the end of the austral summer, with traps in four grids (3.2–4.0 ha in area) and on 34 trap lines distributed across a range of habitats from the shoreline to 250 m above sea level. Mice were scarce, with just 68 captures in about 1750 trap nights. Mouse densities in tussock habitat were estimated at 2.1–2.8 mice/ha, with higher densities of 5.3–6.4 mice/ha along the coastline. Mice were found in all habitats apart from higher-altitude fellfield, but were relatively less abundant in tussock habitat with large numbers of seals. Mice were breeding at both sites with 58 % of mature females pregnant or lactating. Litter size (7.1 ± 2.3 embryos) and adult body mass (21.4 ± 4.6 g) were typical of most other island mice populations. Population densities of mice on South Georgia are two orders of magnitude lower than mouse densities measured at other sub-Antarctic islands. The very low population density and its restricted distribution, with most captures close to the shore, and the presence of large numbers of burrowing petrels and South Georgia pipits Anthus antarcticus at both sites, suggest that mice have a relatively limited impact on South Georgia’s vertebrate biodiversity.

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Acknowledgments

The project was funded by the UK Government’s Darwin Initiative Programme (Grant 18-017) and Overseas Territories Environment Programme (OTEP). The Government of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI), British Antarctic Survey, and Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) provided support and equipment. We thank St. John Payne, GSGSSI Fisheries Officer, and the Master and crew of the FPV Pharos SG, for transport and logistical support. Derek Brown, Nick Torr, and Sally Poncet commented on fieldwork plans, and James Russell and two anonymous reviewers provided feedback that improved this manuscript.

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  1. Graham C. Parker

    Present address: Parker Conservation, 126 Maryhill Terrace, Maryhill, Dunedin, 9011, New Zealand

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Government of South Georgia, Government House, Stanley, Falkland Islands, FIQQ 1ZZ, UK

    Graham C. Parker, Andy Black & Kalinka Rexer-Huber

  2. Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Sandy, Bedfordshire, SG19 2DL, UK

    Erica Sommer & Richard J. Cuthbert

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  1. Graham C. Parker
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Correspondence to Graham C. Parker.

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All applicable international, national and institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed, and procedures were in accordance with the ethical standards of RSPB and GSGSSI.

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Parker, G.C., Black, A., Rexer-Huber, K. et al. Low population density and biology of an island population of house mice Mus musculus on South Georgia. Polar Biol 39, 1175–1181 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00300-015-1831-8

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