Ecological Aspects of Rodent Communities in Agrarian Ecosystems of Moldova

Abstract

The transformations of anthropogenic ecosystems in the last decades provoked significant structural-functional changes in rodent communities, as well as modification of dominance status of some wide spread species. In the 80s the dominant species were those from genus Apodemus, with 63%, of which A. sylvaticus and A. uralensis had the abundance of 55%, being constant on the agricultural fields. The genus Mus species had the abundance of 25% and were the main species on agricultural fields. M. musculus was more frequent and more abundant (15%). After 2000 the abundance of some rodent species increased (A. agrarius, M. spicilegus) and of other species decreased (A. sylvaticus, A. uralensis M. musculus). In the last years abundance decreasing of M. spicilegus was registered. The Microtus vole population is in depression phase its abundance decreasing from about 20% in 2006 to 3% in 2009 and is still low. A. sylvaticus is the most prosperous species among rodents, being dominant and constant in the republic ecosystems.