Abstract
Our hypothesis that the exoanthropic forest rodent species (e.g. bank voles) avoid the urinary odor of the synanthropic house mice was tested in field experiments in August 2016. One count of small mammals was carried out in each of two 4-ha fields by the capture-mark-recapture technique during 12 days. 200 live traps (100 points, 2 traps per point) were exposed and controlled twice a day (early in the morning and in the evening) in each count. One trap in every pair served as a reference, while the second was an experimental one whose foam rubber was applied by 20 μl of the urine of the synanthropic house mice every day. Generally, bank voles chose the odorless trap more often (60.8% vs. 39.2%, χ2 = 3.7, р = 0.054). Adult individuals had a non-significant tendency to avoid the odor-emitting traps. Immature (subadult and juvenile) bank voles reliably avoided the odor-emitting traps (a 2:1 ratio, χ2 = 5.74, р = 0.017). GLM showed an influence of vole age on the choice of the odorless traps. The potential repellent role of sulfur-containing compounds in mouse urine is discussed.
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