LOMOLINO DEB-9707204 The proposed study will assess the effects of fragmentation and the potential benefits of corridors on the diversity of small mammals inhabiting old-growth forests of the Olympic Peninsula in northwest Washington. The investigators will study and characterize the differences in mammalian communities inhabiting continuous old-growth, fragmented old-growth, riparian corridors of old-growth, and second-growth forests. The investigators will study patterns in species richness and species composition and investigate how these patterns are influenced by landscape connectivity. This information has, and will continue to contribute, to the development of a species-based, hierarchical model of biogeography. The results of these studies will provide information critical to conserving native communities in these ancient temperate rainforests. Because many of the mammal species studied serve as prey for other vertebrates, including spotted owls, this study will also provide important information for endangered species management and the use of forests as a resource in the Pacific Northwest.
