Monitoring small terrestrial mammal communities in response to revitalization
Full title: Monitoring communities of small terrestrial mammals in response to revitalization of wet meadows near Krumvíř
Field of study: Zoology
Supervisor: Mgr. Marie Kotasová Adámková, Ph.D.
Official entry:
Cattle grazing is one of the most important forms of land use, and its extensive form is at the same time an important management measure in non-forest ecosystems. It has a strong influence on the physico-chemical properties of the soil and on the composition of flora and fauna. Small terrestrial mammals from the rodent and insectivore families are strongly tied to the food supply in the form of seeds and insects in each habitat, so management activities involving extensive livestock grazing strongly influence their population dynamics and community composition. On the site of wet meadows near the village of Krumvíř, extensive grazing and mowing of selected parts of the site is carried out for the purpose of revitalization. Part of the revitalization is also monitoring of the small mammal community in both areas with implemented management measures and in control areas without intervention. The student's task will be to evaluate the effects of implemented actions on small terrestrial mammal community composition, focusing on microhabitat type and food supply. The student will participate in field sampling and use the data obtained to analyze the impact of each management action (extensive grazing, mowing) on community composition. They will compare the obtained data with the data from the control plot and the intensive grazing in the immediate vicinity of the revitalized plot.