To assess niche overlap between the most similar European sympatric carnivores, the pine marten Martes martes and stone marten Martes foina, and outline their potential distributions and connectivity corridors in Central Italy, we applied a multivariate kernel density procedure which allowed to assess both species' ecological hypervolumes based on a set of 16 environmental predictors and used the resulting probability of occurrence map as a resistance surface in electrical circuit theory-based models. Distance to watercourses and percent cover of deciduous forest and shrubland were the most relevant factors shaping pine marten ecological niche, while stone marten distribution was mainly shaped by human population density and cover of both human settlements and deciduous forest. Overlap between the hypervolumes of the two martens was low-to-moderate, while, on average, landscape connectivity was higher for the stone marten. The inclusion in the models of human disturbance-related variables enabled to define a possible mechanism driving habitat partitioning in human-altered landscapes. Based on our results, increasing human density and urbanization of European lowland and hilly landscapes are expected to represent a greater threat to the pine marten than the stone marten.

Balestrieri, A., Mori, E., Menchetti, M., Ruiz-Gonzalez, A., Milanesi, P. (2019). Far from the madding crowd: Tolerance toward human disturbance shapes distribution and connectivity patterns of closely related Martes spp. POPULATION ECOLOGY, 61(3), 289-299 [10.1002/1438-390X.12001].

Far from the madding crowd: Tolerance toward human disturbance shapes distribution and connectivity patterns of closely related Martes spp

Mori E.;
2019-01-01

Abstract

To assess niche overlap between the most similar European sympatric carnivores, the pine marten Martes martes and stone marten Martes foina, and outline their potential distributions and connectivity corridors in Central Italy, we applied a multivariate kernel density procedure which allowed to assess both species' ecological hypervolumes based on a set of 16 environmental predictors and used the resulting probability of occurrence map as a resistance surface in electrical circuit theory-based models. Distance to watercourses and percent cover of deciduous forest and shrubland were the most relevant factors shaping pine marten ecological niche, while stone marten distribution was mainly shaped by human population density and cover of both human settlements and deciduous forest. Overlap between the hypervolumes of the two martens was low-to-moderate, while, on average, landscape connectivity was higher for the stone marten. The inclusion in the models of human disturbance-related variables enabled to define a possible mechanism driving habitat partitioning in human-altered landscapes. Based on our results, increasing human density and urbanization of European lowland and hilly landscapes are expected to represent a greater threat to the pine marten than the stone marten.
2019
Balestrieri, A., Mori, E., Menchetti, M., Ruiz-Gonzalez, A., Milanesi, P. (2019). Far from the madding crowd: Tolerance toward human disturbance shapes distribution and connectivity patterns of closely related Martes spp. POPULATION ECOLOGY, 61(3), 289-299 [10.1002/1438-390X.12001].
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
Balestrieri et al. 2019.pdf

non disponibili

Tipologia: PDF editoriale
Licenza: NON PUBBLICO - Accesso privato/ristretto
Dimensione 2.23 MB
Formato Adobe PDF
2.23 MB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri   Richiedi una copia

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11365/1080912