Ecological Factors Influencing Small Rodents in a Tree Thinned Japanese Larch Larix kaempferi Plantation

ABSTRACT We used a capture-recapture method to investigate the ecological factor influencing small rodents in a tree thinned Japanese larch Larix kaempferi plantation in Mt. Maehwa, Hongcheon, South Korea. The mid-story, understory and ground vegetation coverage, the number of standing and downed trees ha-1 and the volume of downed trees ha-1 were significantly different between the pre-and post-thinning sessions. Mean density of Apodemus agrarius, A. peninsulae, and Myodes regulus were significantly different between sessions. Monthly captured adults and juveniles of A. agrarius and A. peninsulae were significantly higher in the post-than in the pre-thinning session. Population sizes were dramatically increased in the post-thinning session. Ground and understory vegetation coverage and number of downed trees ha-1 positively influenced the density. The overstory vegetation coverage negatively influenced the density. Tree thinning resulted in well-developed ground and understory vegetation and increasing downed trees might be an important method for forest management and biodiversity conservation.