The Use of Selfie Camera Traps to Estimate Home Range and Movement Patterns of Small Mammals in a Fragmented Landscape

A camera trapping method for the targeted capture of Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) tails for individual scale pattern recognition

Camera traps are commonly used to monitor and study wild animals in their natural habitat, with minimal disturbance. Several investigations have shown that the natural markings of animals for some species can be used for individual recognition. However, most commercially available cameras are unable to obtain photos of sufficient quality to highlight these features. Our study further exemplifies the use of applying an external lens to a camera, to obtain higher quality images. We tested various lenses and their ability to record the scale patterns on Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) tails, for individual identification. We tested eleven different commercially available camera trap models, across six different beaver territories in the Districts of Kleve and Wesel (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany). The use of an external lens, attached to the camera, produced the best quality pictures for reliable identification of individual beavers based on the scale patterns on their tales. These results further exemplify the application of external lenses for improving image quality for individual recognition which has potential applications for other species.

Informing Wildlife Corridor Creation through Population Genetics of an Arboreal Marsupial in a Fragmented Landscape

Habitat loss and fragmentation contribute significantly to the decline of arboreal mammal populations. As populations become fragmented and isolated, a reduction in gene flow can result in a loss of genetic diversity and have an overall impact upon long-term persistence. Creating wildlife corridors can mitigate such effects by increasing the movement and dispersal of animals, thus acting to reduce population isolation. To evaluate the success of a corridor, a before-after experimental research framework can be used. Here, we report the genetic diversity and structure of sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) sampling locations within a fragmented landscape prior to the implementation of a wildlife corridor. This study used 5999 genome-wide SNPs from 94 sugar gliders caught from 8 locations in a fragmented landscape in south-eastern New South Wales, Australia. Overall genetic structure was limited, and gene flow was detected across the landscape. Our findings indicate that the study area contains one large population. A major highway dissecting the landscape did not act as a significant barrier to dispersal, though this may be because of its relatively new presence in the landscape (completed in 2018). Future studies may yet indicate its long-term impact as a barrier to gene flow. Future work should aim to repeat the methods of this study to examine the medium-to-long-term impacts of the wildlife corridor on sugar gliders, as well as examine the genetic structure of other native, specialist species in the landscape.