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Arboreal Behavior of the Red-Backed Vole of the Genus Myodes (Rodentia, Cricetidae) in the Northern European Taiga

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Abstract

The arboreal activity of small mammals was studied in the foothill taiga of the northern Urals. The research was conducted in August over three years. Each time, 100 traps were placed on the ground, and 50 were located in the surrounding trees at 1.5–2 m above the ground. In total, 279 mammals representing seven species were captured in live traps. Of these, two individuals of the bank vole (Myodes glareolus) and 51 individuals of the northern red-backed vole (M. rutilus) were recorded in trees. Trees were mostly used by resident animals within their home area. The catchability of voles in trees was significantly related to the density of the species in the ground tier. The use of trees by red-backed voles depended neither on the type of tree nor the thickness of the trunk. The sex-and-age composition of voles registered in trees did not differ from the composition in the ground tier. After a night of rain, the catch of voles in the upper traps increased significantly. The visiting of trees by voles is associated with voles feeding on arboreal lichens.

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Funding

This study was carried out within the framework of a State Assignment, project no. AAAA-A18-118042490060-1, with the financial support of the Russian Foundation for Basic Research, project no. 19-04-00985.

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  1. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119071, Moscow, Russia

    A. A. Kalinin

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Correspondence to A. A. Kalinin.

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Statement on the welfare of animals. All applicable international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed.

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Kalinin, A.A. Arboreal Behavior of the Red-Backed Vole of the Genus Myodes (Rodentia, Cricetidae) in the Northern European Taiga. Biol Bull Russ Acad Sci 48, 1151–1156 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1062359021070153

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1062359021070153

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