0000000001324125
AUTHOR
Sandro Bertolino
Seasonal survival in a non-hibernating Mediterranean garden dormouse population
The seasonal survival pattern of a garden dormouse Eliomys quercinus population was studied in a Mediterranean agricultural field area from East Spain, a geographical location in which this species does exhibit no hibernation. Individuals were captured from nest—boxes checked monthly during a 4-year period. Data were analysed using an open population Cormack–Jolly–Seber model including sex, age class and season as factors. Best models included the effect of age and differences in survival between adult males and females. Survival rate was more variable between seasons in males than in females or juveniles. Maximum adult male survival was reached in autumn, decreased in winter and dropped to…
Communal nesting in the garden dormouse (Eliomys quercinus)
Communal nesting has been described in many rodents including some dormouse species. In this study, we report the existence of this reproductive strategy in the garden dormouse Eliomys quercinus. Data was recorded by checking natural nests and nest-boxes from 2003 to 2013 in SE Spain. Pups and adults dormice found in nests were captured and marked. Overall, 198 nests were found: 161 (81.31%) were singular nests and 37 (18.69%) were communal nests. Communal nests were composed by different combinations of one up to three females together with one up to three different size litters. The number of communal nests varied from year to year in accordance with the number of singular nests and no se…
THAT'S THE PRESS, BABY! THE PRESS! BUT THERE'S SOMETHING YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT. THE MANAGEMENT OF THE GREY SQUIRREL SEEN THROUGH THE EYES OF THE MEDIA
Eradication of introduced populations are key conservation tools to mitigate the impacts caused by established alien species. Although the scientific community widely agrees with the necessity to manage and control invasive species, the public opinion often may not support these projects, especially if the species have a strong appeal to the public. The public opinion could be affected by mass media, in particular when the audience has little experience with a particular issue (media-dependency hypothesis). A good communicative campaign could increase the acceptance of management activities and the probability of success, while a poor campaign may lead to more problems or even failures. In …
Eliciting stakeholders’ preferences towards numerical control of invasive alien mammals: a factorial survey approach with the Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) in Italy.
Management schemes for invasive mammals that may involve direct shooting of animals must possess two fundamental attributes for working: being attractive for voluntary hunters, who often replace professional gamekeepers, and being accepted by the general public, which would otherwise delegitimize agencies. Traditionally, surveys are adopted to elicit the management preferences of these two stakeholders and to inform policy-makers. However, they suffer from social desirability bias and factorial surveys, where respondents evaluate hypothetical scenarios describing alternative management options, are supposed to be a more effective tool. We tested the effectiveness of factorial surveys to mea…