Abstract
A study to understand diversity and changes in non-volant small mammal composition in the Western Ghats of Coorg District, Karnataka was conducted from April 2004 to April 2008. A total of 11060 trap nights of sampling in various habitats such as forest fragments, coffee and cardamom plantations, open areas including grasslands, agricultural fields including paddy and ginger cultivations, bamboo and in and around human habitations across the two vegetation zones of the district. Totally, 14 species of non-volant small mammals were trapped as 412 unique individuals contributing to an overall trap success of 3.8%. Rattus wroughtoni was the most commonly caught taxon followed by Suncus murinus and S. niger although S. murinus was trapped in 10 habitats followed by Mus musculus in 9 of 11 habitats. The abundance of small mammals was the highest in bamboo (12.1%) and in forest fragments (7.2%); the plantations supported very low abundances (< 3.1%). Endemic mammals such as Rattus satarae, Vandeleuria nilagirica, Platacanthomys lasiurus, Funambulus tristriatus and Suncus niger were recorded in Coorg although P. lasiurus and V. nilagirica were trapped in only one habitat each. Changes in land use and rapid decline in quality of habitat is pushing the endemics into local extinctions while non-endemic commensals are displacing restricted endemics in disturbed habitats. This study underlines the need for more in-depth rapid assessments in the Western Ghats for the poorly understood small mammals and the initiation of conservation programmes for endemics.
Highlights
Volant and non-volant small mammals constitute almost 75% (73%) of the worlds mammalian diversity with just the non-volant small mammals contributing a little over 50% (52.5%) (Amori & Gippoliti 2000; Wilson & Reeder 2005)
The Common White-bellied Rat was the most common taxon trapped constituting 26.2% of individuals, a distinctly higher proportion compared to all other rodents, followed by the two insectivores Suncus murinus or the Grey Musk Shrew (16.3% of individuals) and Suncus niger or the Nilgiri Highland Shrew (16.3% of individuals)
The insectivore Order Eulipotyphla represented by three soricid species contributed to 33% of the trap catches
Summary
Volant and non-volant small mammals constitute almost 75% (73%) of the worlds mammalian diversity with just the non-volant small mammals contributing a little over 50% (52.5%) (Amori & Gippoliti 2000; Wilson & Reeder 2005). The composition is very similar in South Asia (Molur et al 2002; Molur et al 2005) and in the Western Ghats (Nameer et al 2001). Their composition is usually not reflected in biodiversity inventories due to the lack of specific methods required to understand their diversity. The earliest inventory of small mammals in India was by the Bombay Natural History Societys Mammal Survey of India project, which included all groups, in the early 20th century. The Mammal Survey of India was a pioneering effort in documenting the mammalian fauna of the Indian Subcontinent including India, Bhutan, Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Shortridge, who worked extensively for two months, December-January of 1912-13 in the small district of Western Ghats
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