The Distribution of Small Mammals on Samuel H. Ordway Memorial Prairie

Factors affecting the distribution of small mammals have been investigated for many years. Environmental characteristics which correlated with rodent populations have been found to vary from specie to specie. If Ordway Prairie were homogeneous with regard to habitat, management would be relatively simple. The prairie, however, is heterogeneous in its habitat. Intuitively one could expect that management to increase or decrease a particular species could possibly affect the population levels of other beneficial species. The objectives of this study were to document the presence, relative abundance, and distribution of small mammals on S.H. Ordway Prairie. An additional objective was to quantitatively determine those factors which best discriminate between the habitats of the major rodent species