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Assessing the Relation between the Spatiotemporal Microhabitat Heterogeneity and the Dispersion Patterns of Two Syntopic Small Mammals in a Midlatitude Temperate Forest

Ivan Mijail De la Cruz-Arguello,A. Castro-Campillo,Alejandro Zavala-Hurtado,A. Salame-Méndez,J. Ramírez-Pulido

Published 2018 in bioRxiv

ABSTRACT

One of the basics problems in ecology is to understand the factors that shape the spatial patterns in the distribution of the species and the coexistence of close relatives species. Among the most critical factors governing the distributions and the coexistence of species are the spatiotemporal changes occurring in the microhabitat heterogeneity. Here, we assessed the heterogeneity of microhabitats and how they affect the spatial segregation of two species of small mammals (i. e., Peromyscus difficilis and P. melanotis), which coexist in a temperate, mixed forest. We evaluated the microhabitat heterogeneity through multivariate statistics, using onto 23 habitat variables describing horizontal-vertical habitat structure along pluvial seasons. To detect specific microdistribution changes and habitat preferences by two species of small mammals, we used second-order spatial statistics and general linear models. According to their respective morphology and locomotive adaptations, the middle sized, midscansorial P. difficilis was resident all year long and preferred microhabitats with a high log ground cover, while the opportunistic, small sized, cursorial P. melanotis changed its occupancy area, depending on the density of herbaceous and woody plants cover. Under the more benign microhabitat conditions of the rainy season (denser plant coverage, milder temperature), both species showed closer microdistribution patterns; while these became repulsive at the less favorable conditions of the dry season (scarcer plant cover, colder temperature). Thus, we could confirm that seasonal changes of microhabitat heterogeneity promoted Peromyscus coexistence, through dispersion patterns reflecting partition of microhabitat resources.

PUBLICATION RECORD

  • Publication year

    2018

  • Venue

    bioRxiv

  • Publication date

    2018-06-04

  • Fields of study

    Biology, Environmental Science

  • Identifiers
    DOI 10.1101/278390
  • External record

    Open on Semantic Scholar

  • Source metadata

    Semantic Scholar

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