Assessing small mammal community diversity with minimally invasive field methods - examples from the Gesäuse National Park
Christine Blatt, apodemus - Privates Institut für Wildtierbiologie OG, Haus im Ennstal (AT)
Although small mammals are amongst the biological groups with the highest species richness, there is just a modest number of studies carried out on them mainly because the field work is usually cost and time intensive. In the Nationalpark Gesäuse a small mammal study was conducted in the years 2012-2013. The aim was to assess the diversity of the resident small mammal community as well as to gain information on the supposed presence of endangered species like the water shrew. For this, minimally invasive and species optimized field methods like hair traps, faecal sample tubes, nest boxes and live trapping were used.