Population fluctuations and spatial synchrony in an arboreal rodent
Maarit Jokinen; Ilpo K. Hanski; Otso Huitu; Antero Mäkelä; Jaanus Remm; Ralf Wistbacka; Heikki Henttonen; Vesa Selonen; Risto Sulkava; Erkki Korpimäki
Population fluctuations and spatial synchrony in an arboreal rodent
Maarit Jokinen
Ilpo K. Hanski
Otso Huitu
Antero Mäkelä
Jaanus Remm
Ralf Wistbacka
Heikki Henttonen
Vesa Selonen
Risto Sulkava
Erkki Korpimäki
SPRINGER
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on:
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2021042827188
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2021042827188
Tiivistelmä
Climatic conditions, trophic links between species and dispersal may induce spatial synchrony in population fluctuations. Spatial synchrony increases the extinction risk of populations and, thus, it is important to understand how synchrony-inducing mechanisms affect populations already threatened by habitat loss and climate change. For many species, it is unclear how population fluctuations vary over time and space, and what factors potentially drive this variation. In this study, we focus on factors determining population fluctuations and spatial synchrony in the Siberian flying squirrel, Pteromys volans, using long-term monitoring data from 16 Finnish populations located 2-400 km apart. We found an indication of synchronous population dynamics on a large scale in flying squirrels. However, the synchrony was not found to be clearly related to distance between study sites because the populations seemed to be strongly affected by small-scale local factors. The regularity of population fluctuations varied over time. The fluctuations were linked to changes in winter precipitation, which has previously been linked to the reproductive success of flying squirrels. Food abundance (tree mast) and predator abundance were not related to population fluctuations in this study. We conclude that spatial synchrony was not unequivocally related to distance in flying squirrels, as has been observed in earlier studies for more abundant rodent species. Our study also emphasises the role of climate in population fluctuations and the synchrony of the species.
Kokoelmat
- Rinnakkaistallenteet [19207]