Evaluation of pitfall trapping in northwestern forests: Trap arrays with drift fences
Journal of Wildlife Management
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Abstract
We operated pitfall arrays with 5-m drift fences at 30 stands in western Oregon and Washington for 180 days. Pitfall arrays had a pronounced removal effect on small mammals (but not on the herpetofauna) during the 1st 60 days of trapping. Conventional short (10-day) trapping periods were only adequate to detect the most common mammals. About 60 days were needed to compile a relatively complete species list (>85% of species captured) at each site. Reptiles were caught almost exclusively in the summer; amphibian captures were correlated with increased precipitation in the fall. Short (2.5-m) drift fences were less effective than the standard length of 5 m. Funnel traps captured few forest vertebrates. Pitfalls captured more insectivorous mammals than did snap traps, but snap traps were more effective for a few cricetid rodents. Pitfall arrays are adaptable to many habitats and can help assess the presence of small vertebrates, such as shrews and amphibians, that are undersampled by other techniques.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Evaluation of pitfall trapping in northwestern forests: Trap arrays with drift fences |
| Series title | Journal of Wildlife Management |
| DOI | 10.2307/3801640 |
| Volume | 51 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Year Published | 1987 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Wiley |
| Contributing office(s) | Northwest Pacific Islands Regional Director's Office |
| Description | 8 p. |
| First page | 112 |
| Last page | 119 |
| Country | United States |
| State | Oregon, Washington |