Abstract
One of the main threats to native species conservation is urbanisation. It is causing changes to natural habitats and species composition. Urban green spaces have shown to have conservation value for native species by providing safe spaces in urban areas. They typically contain a variety of habitats and plant species which is correlated with greater abundance and diversity of small mammal species. Zoos are a vital resource for animal conservation and, in some instances, could be considered as an urban green space for native species conservation. Their unique environment provides free-living, native species an abundance of resources including food and shelter. This project involved the live trapping of free-living small mammal species (<40 g) between enclosures in Dudley Zoological Gardens to study the effects of the zoo environment. There were no significant differences found between the total number of captures and trap proximity to enclosures. There was a significant difference in total captures found between different enclosure trapping areas. Generalized linear mixed models were fitted to the data and there were significant relationships between abundance and both habitat type and enclosure species. Habitats associated with semi-natural woodland had the greatest diversity and total captures of small mammals. Total captures were lower in trapping areas that were associated with predatory species. Similar to research on green spaces, habitat was an important factor determining abundance, but predator enclosures were a factor unique to zoos. This study illustrates the potential of zoos as an urban green space and for the study of small mammals.
Highlights
Urbanisation is one of the biggest threats to biodiversity and native species causing both habitat destruction and fragmentation (Encarnação & Becker, 2015; Klimant et al, 2015)
The majority of the total captures were of wood mice (177 captures; 89.4%) and this species was caught across all sites, while shrews accounted for only 4% of all captures
Assessing the native biodiversity within a zoo's ground is important for several reasons. It helps to focus educational material and public engagement on native species found within the zoo and their conservation
Summary
Urbanisation is one of the biggest threats to biodiversity and native species causing both habitat destruction and fragmentation (Encarnação & Becker, 2015; Klimant et al, 2015). Increasing populations means towns and cities are expanding to meet growing demand; changing habitats and creating barriers to animal movements (Klimant et al, 2015). This is contributing to the continuing decrease of biodiversity across the world (MacGregor‐ Fors et al, 2016). Predator–prey relationships could be disrupted leading to a potential reduction in food sources and more intense competition for resources both within and between species (MacGregor‐Fors et al, 2016). Plant communities are at threat of becoming homogenised with more adaptable species dominating, again leading to a reduction in food sources and increased competition for other species (Ecke et al, 2017). Barriers to movement and fragmented habitat can reduce gene flow between populations leading to a reduction in genetic diversity and even isolation of populations (Wilson et al, 2016)
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