Species and Distribution Patterns of Small Mammals in the Pingheliang Nature Reserve of Qinling Mountain, Shaanxi
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Abstract
This paper presents species and distribution patterns of small mammals in the Pingheliang and Niubeiliang Nature Reserves on the south slope of the eastern part of Qinling Mountain. This work was conducted in September, 2005. A total of 689 individuals were captured on 2460 trap-days. Twenty-seven species of small mammals, representing three orders, six families and 19 genera, were recorded from 10 study sites. The average rate of capture was 28.01%. Ananalysis of ecological and vertical distribution of the mammals showed that the Shannon-Weiner diversity index in three communities was 2.9288-3.3639
and the Pielou evenness index was 0.7669-0.8602. Based on this survey and former studies in other nature reserves and areas surrounding Qinling Mountain, the small mammal fauna of Pingheliang Nature Reserve includes 48 species of three orders, 11 families and 33 genera. This presents a higher diversity and richness of small mammals on the south slope of the eastern part of Qinling Mountain than in other areas of the mountain. Parascaptor leucura, Sorex bedfordiae, Myospalax smithii and Niviventer excelsior caught in this investigation are the first records of these species on Qinling Mountain. A list of 55 small mammals from the south slope of Qinling Mountain is also given following a general review. The south slope of Qinling Mountain should be classified within the Southwest Region in the zoogeography of China.
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