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AUTHORS: Kamden Glade, Wartburg College; Jake Haberman, Wartburg College; Rob Rottler, Wartburg College; Jake Thumann, Wartburg College; Dr. David McCullough, Wartburg College
ABSTRACT: The habitat degradation and fragmentation that occurs in Iowa as a result of urban expansion, construction of infrastructure, and the conversion of pre-settlement habitat to row-crop agriculture has caused several small mammal species historically found in the region to become scarce. This is particularly true for those small mammals that have their movements between habitat fragments restricted. Included in this group of small mammals are the arvicoline rodents: Southern bog lemmings (Synaptomys cooperi), prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster), and meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus). This study was designed to use live trapping data and vegetation analysis from three sites in Northeast Iowa to provide a current status of arvicoline rodent presence and distribution. Data suggest that presence, distribution, and relative abundance of these species is positively correlated with habitat quality and negatively correlated with habitat size, although it is likely that the habitat size correlation is artefactual. Furthermore, capture rates show that meadow voles, which are habitat generalists, are more abundant while prairie voles are rare and Southern bog lemmings are absent from the areas surveyed. Recommendations for species restoration include such techniques as habitat restoration, construction of accessible corridors, and reintroduction of eradicated species that may allow the rare species to persist, and even thrive in Northeast Iowa.
