Chainsaw-Carved Cavities Better Mimic the Thermal Properties of Natural Tree Hollows than Nest Boxes and Log Hollows
Chainsaw-Carved Cavities Better Mimic the Thermal Properties of Natural Tree Hollows than Nest Boxes and Log Hollows
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DOI：
10.3390/f9050235
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发表时间：
2018-05-01
期刊：
影响因子：
2.9
通讯作者：
Robert, Kylie A.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Griffiths, Stephen R.;Lentini, Pia E.;Robert, Kylie A.
创造补充栖息地，有效地模仿自然树洞的物理和热特性应该是景观恢复和生物多样性补偿计划的一个关键优先事项。在这里，我们比较了天然树洞与三种为小型有袋类滑翔动物和栖息在树上的食虫蝙蝠设计的人工树洞的热分布：（1）直接刻在活树的树干和树枝上的电锯洞，（2）原木洞，和（3）胶合板巢箱。链锯空洞的热分布类似于天然树洞：它们在夜间始终比环境条件温暖，而在白天则比环境温度低。相比之下，滑翔机和蝙蝠箱有相反的加热和冷却模式，晚上比周围环境略冷，白天则热得多。滑翔机日志中空有更大的变化，在内部温度相比，自然中空和链锯中空，但波动小于滑翔机盒。我们的研究结果提供了第一个经验证据，即直接刻在活树上的人工中空可以产生热稳定的补充栖息地，可能会缓冲依赖中空的动物群免受极端天气的影响;而隔热不良的胶合板巢箱产生较低质量的热环境。这些发现为参与保护管理和生物多样性补偿计划的利益相关者提供了积极的动力，以考虑在目标动物需要良好绝缘的补充栖息地的情况下试用链锯空洞。
The creation of supplementary habitats that effectively mimic the physical and thermal characteristics of natural tree hollows should be a key priority for landscape restoration and biodiversity offset programs. Here, we compare the thermal profiles of natural tree hollows with three types of artificial hollows designed for small marsupial gliders and tree-roosting insectivorous bats: (1) chainsaw hollows' carved directly into the trunks and branches of live trees, (2) log hollows', and (3) plywood nest boxes. Chainsaw hollows had thermal profiles that were similar to natural tree hollows: they were consistently warmer than ambient conditions at night, while remaining cooler than ambient during the day. In contrast, glider and bat boxes had the opposite pattern of heating and cooling, being slightly cooler than ambient at night and substantially hotter during the day. Glider log hollows had greater variation in internal temperatures compared to natural hollows and chainsaw hollows, but fluctuated less than glider boxes. Our results provide the first empirical evidence that artificial hollows carved directly into live trees can produce thermally stable supplementary habitats that could potentially buffer hollow-dependent fauna from weather extremes; whereas, poorly insulated plywood nest boxes produce lower-quality thermal environments. Together these findings provide positive impetus for stakeholders involved in conservation management and biodiversity offset programs to consider trialing chainsaw hollows in situations where target fauna require well-insulated supplementary habitats.