Fall movements of Allegheny woodrats in harvested and intact stands in West Virginia

Abstract

Populations of the Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister have experienced declines over the last 30 years, particularly in the northern and western parts of their range. Although relatively untested, silvicultural practices that alter forest structure and composition have been hypothesized as having negative impacts on Allegheny woodrat habitat and populations. To investigate the effects of timber harvesting on Allegheny woodrats in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia, we compared home range size and foraging movements between woodrats adjacent to a harvested stand to those in an intact forest stand during fall 1997 using radio telemetry. Mean home range size of all woodrats combined was 0.65 (±0.20) ha. Mean home range, movement rate, and maximum distance traveled from the den did not differ between the harvested and intact stands or between sex or age classes. Home range and foraging movements in fall were considerably smaller than those documented from summer in previous studies. It is likely that home range and foraging movements are affected less by surrounding habitat alterations in fall and winter than in summer because of limited movements away from the outcrop and reliance on cached foods. Copyright © 2005 by the Society of American Foresters.