How to translate text using browser tools
29 August 2023 Zoonotic implications of white-footed mice habitat selection and territoriality in fragmented landscapes
Grace F. Hummell, Andrew Y. Li, Cody M. Kent, Jennifer M. Mullinax
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

White-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) populations can thrive in fragmented suburban and urban parks and residential spaces and play a pivotal role in the spread and prevalence of tick-borne diseases. We collected spatial data on 58 individual mice living at the intersection of county park land and residential land in suburban Howard County, MD, U.S.A. We analyzed mouse density, home-range size and overlap, and a Bayesian mixed-effects model to identify the habitats where they were found relative to where they were caught, as well as a resource selection function for general habitat use. We found that as mouse density increased, home-range size decreased. The overlap indices and the resource selection function supported territoriality coupled with site-specific space use in these suburban mouse populations. While mice occurred in open areas, forest edge, and forest, they showed a strong preference for forested areas. Interestingly, mice captured only 30 to 40 m into the forest rarely used the nearby private yards or human structures and this has direct implications for the placement of rodent-targeted tick control treatments. Our study supports the need for zoonotic disease management frameworks that are based on site-specific land cover characteristics as well as specific management objectives.

Grace F. Hummell, Andrew Y. Li, Cody M. Kent, and Jennifer M. Mullinax "Zoonotic implications of white-footed mice habitat selection and territoriality in fragmented landscapes," Journal of Vector Ecology 48(2), 89-102, (29 August 2023). https://doi.org/10.52707/1081-1710-48.2.89
Received: 28 February 2023; Accepted: 3 July 2023; Published: 29 August 2023
JOURNAL ARTICLE
14 PAGES

This article is only available to subscribers.
It is not available for individual sale.
+ SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

KEYWORDS
habitat use
integrated tick management
Lyme disease
Peromyscus leucopus
resource selection functions
urban ecology
white-footed mouse
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS
Get copyright permission
Back to Top