Abstract

FERNANDEZ DE CORDOVA, Javier; NIVELO-VILLAVICENCIO, Carlos  and  ASTUDILLO, Pedro X. Variation in the community of small non-volant mammals in high Andean forests of the Cajas National Park, Ecuador. Mastozool. neotrop. [online]. 2017, vol.24, n.2, pp.347-354. ISSN 0327-9383.

The southern Andes of Ecuador have a rich diversity of non-flying small mammals. However, the loss of habitat in the high Andean region is extensive. In particular, montane forests are being subjected to strong anthropogenic pressures; so protected areas are important conservation tools. Unfortunately, habitat degradation and loss also affect these areas. Cajas National Park is a protected area within this region that contains montane forest influenced by different levels of anthropic alteration. We sought to understand how the community of non-flying small mammals responds to habitat changes in montane forest areas. To this end, we evaluated the differences in the composition of the community of non-flying small mammals on eight plots in two localities with differing anthropogenic pressures: Mazán, an area closed to tourists with greater plant diversity and trees with greater diameters, and Llaviucu, an area open to tourists with lower diversity and lower average tree size. In total, 877 individuals of 13 species were recorded. Nephelomys albigularis, Akodon mollis and Thomasomys baeops were the most abundant. Ordination of the community revealed a tendency to separate the composition between the two study sites; Phyllotis andium, Thomasomys caudivarius and Caenolestesfuliginosus tend to cluster in plots characterized by an increase in the number of trees with larger diameters and greater plant diversity. This feature explains how species associated with more arboreal habits, sensitive to habitat change, are more strongly associated with mature montane forests strictly protected from human impacts.

Keywords : Composition analysis; Habitat structure; Montane forest; NMDS.

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