Elusive mustelids-18 months in the search of near-threatened stoat ( Mustela erminea ) and weasel ( M. nivalis ) reveals low captures.

Autor: Konradsen SN; Department of Zoology, Natural History Museum of Denmark University of Copenhagen Copenhagen Denmark., Havmøller LW; Department of Zoology, Natural History Museum of Denmark University of Copenhagen Copenhagen Denmark., Krag C; Department of Zoology, Natural History Museum of Denmark University of Copenhagen Copenhagen Denmark., Møller PR; Department of Zoology, Natural History Museum of Denmark University of Copenhagen Copenhagen Denmark.; Norwegian College of Fishery Science UiT-The Arctic University of Norway Tromsø Norway., Havmøller RW; Department of Zoology, Natural History Museum of Denmark University of Copenhagen Copenhagen Denmark.; Department for the Ecology of Animal Societies Max Planck Institute for Animal Behaviour Germany.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Ecology and evolution [Ecol Evol] 2024 May 01; Vol. 14 (5), pp. e11374. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 May 01 (Print Publication: 2024).
DOI: 10.1002/ece3.11374
Abstrakt: Stoat ( Mustela erminea ) and weasel ( M. nivalis) are hard to monitor as they are elusive of nature and leave few identifying marks in their surroundings. Stoat and weasel are both fully protected in Denmark and are thought to be widely distributed throughout the country. Despite this stoat and weasel were listed on the Danish Red List as Near Threatened in 2019, as their densities and population trends are unknown. Using a modified novel camera trapping device, the Double-Mostela, a wooden box comprising a tracking tunnel and two camera traps, we attempted to obtain density estimates based on identification of individual stoats and weasels. We deployed camera traps both inside Double-Mostela traps and externally in three different study areas in northern Zealand, Denmark, and tested commercial, American scent-based lures to attract stoat and weasel. We obtained very low seasonal trapping rates of weasel in two study areas, but in one study area, we obtained a seasonal trapping rate of stoat larger compared to another study using the Mostela. In one study area, both species were absent. We observed no effect of scent-based lures in attracting small mustelids compared to non-bait traps. Potential reasons behind low capture rates of weasel and stoat are suboptimal habitat placement and timing of deployment of the Double-Mostelas, land-use changes over the last 200 years, predation from larger predators, as well as unintended secondary poisoning with rodenticides. Due to the scarcity of weasel and stoat captures, we were unable to make density estimates based on identification of individuals; however, we identified potential features that could be used for identification and density estimates with more captures.
Competing Interests: We have no conflicts of interest to declare.
(© 2024 The Authors. Ecology and Evolution published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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