Small Terrestrial Rodents in Disturbed and Old-Growth Montane Oak Forest in Costa Rica

26.10 Conclusions

Results are generally consistent with those presented by Lanzewizki (1991), and Johnson and Vaughan (1993), who recorded five myomorph species of which P. mexicanus (P. nudipes, in their study) and S. xerampelinus were most common. Our study revealed seven species of terrestrial myomorph rodents, including O. albigularis and H. oresterus as new local records. Both datasets indicate the importance of within-habitat micro-environmental heterogeneity for rodent populations in these forests.

Although most species were not confined to a specific successional forest phase, Heteromys species did seem to prefer older stages such as closed and open mature forest. However, the data did not suffice for a thorough analysis of co-occurrences of species and variability between local species assemblages. More grid-based plots (replicates) need to be sampled during longer trapping sessions, preferably over a series of consecutive years, in order to achieve statistically reliable results. The results presented only support a much-needed first inventory of species, and offer preliminary insights into species abundance and habitat preference. Large-scale, long-term species monitoring is required to assess the current status and trends of small terrestrial rodent species populations and assemblages in neotropical montane oak forests.