An experimental test of habitat selection by rodents of Algonquin Park

Using an enclosure experiment, we tested whether substrate selection by deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus), redback voles (Clethrionomys gapperi), and woodland jumping mice (Napaeozapus insignis) matched habitat-use patterns determined from trapping data. Mice were introduced into a 5 m diameter enclosure containing substrates from three habitats: maple, mixed, and coniferous forest. Trapping data were taken from a long-term monitoring study of small-mammal populations in Algonquin Park, Ontario. We used data from 1991 – 1995 from the three habitats used in the enclosure experiment. If competition or predation affects habitat distribution patterns, then, given a choice, mice should select different substrates in the enclosures from those they use in the field. Alternatively, if habitat use is not constrained by interactions with competitors or predators (i.e., if small mammals select habitats), then habitats used in the enclosure should match habitat distributions observed in the field. Habitats used in the field did not match habitats selected in the enclosure experiment for either deer mice or woodland jumping mice. Redback voles selected habitats similar to those used in the field. We conclude that interspecific competition and (or) predation may limit availability of habitats for deer mice and woodland jumping mice.