Small mammal community changes during forest succession (Pakruojis district, north Lithuania)

Abstract

Small mammal communities were investigated in three stages of the meadow-forest succession (natural meadow, 5–10-year-old forest plantation [FP] and 15–20-year-old spruce–birch forest stand [FS]) in the Pakruojis forest (north Lithuania) in 2007–2011. These three consecutive forest succession phases occurred after a forest had been planted in a natural meadow. Four hundred and eighty-eight individuals of nine small mammal species were registered in the above-mentioned three habitats during the four-year study period. We found that the highest species diversity was in the natural meadow: Shannon’s diversity index H = 2.65, Margalef’s species richness index d = 1.68 and Pielou species evenness index e = 0.84. The above-mentioned indexes showed a smaller small mammal species diversity in the FP: Shannon’s H = 2.54, Margalef’s d = 1.47 and evenness e = 0.80. The lowest species diversity was registered in the FS: Shannon’s H = 2.08, Margalef’s d = 1.21 and evenness e = 0.74. The highest relative abundance of s...