Distribution and diversity of squirrels on university and college campuses of the United States and Canada
Distribution and diversity of squirrels on university and college campuses of the United States and Canada
复制标题
美国和加拿大大学校园松鼠的分布和多样性
作者：
J. Peplinski;Joel s. Brown
北美学院和大学校园里的松鼠一直是非正式场合热烈讨论的主题，但直到现在才对它们在这种栖息地类型中的分布进行系统评估。我们从加拿大和美国大陆的536所大学的教师专家那里收集了松鼠物种的存在和缺失的报告，发现松鼠在校园里几乎无处不在（95%的校园里至少有一种松鼠，40%的校园里有三种或更多松鼠），但只有少数几种松鼠是校园里常见的居民。其中最主要的是东部灰松鼠（Sciurus carolinensis -在62%的调查校园中），其次是东部狐松鼠（Sciurus niger），东部花栗鼠（Tamias striatus），北美红松鼠（Tamiasciurus hudsonicus）和土拨鼠（旱獭）。东部灰松鼠和狐松鼠在它们共同的原生/核心范围和西海岸彼此划分校园。虽然这些入侵的东部物种出现在西海岸的校园里，但值得注意的是，应急分析并没有提供证据表明它们是阻止西部灰松鼠（Sciurus griseus）使用这些栖息地的主要因素。这里提出的清单和分析可以为校园内和校园间的纵向研究提供基础，并且可以有效地与学生参与研究的倡议相结合。
Squirrels on North American college and university campuses have been the subject of much animated conversation in informal venues, but a systematic assessment of their distribution across this habitat type has not been undertaken until now. We collected reports of squirrel species' presence and absence from faculty experts at 536 campuses in Canada and the continental United States, and found that squirrels are nearly ubiquitous on campuses (95% had at least one species, and 40% had three or more), but that only a select few species are common campus residents. Foremost among these is the eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis—on 62% of surveyed campuses), followed by the eastern fox squirrel (Sciurus niger), eastern chipmunk (Tamias striatus), North American red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus), and woodchuck (Marmota monax). Eastern gray and fox squirrels partition campuses with one another, both in their shared native/core range and on the West Coast. While these invasive eastern species are present on campuses on the West Coast, notably, contingency analysis did not provide evidence that they are the primary factor discouraging western gray squirrels (Sciurus griseus) from using these habitats. The inventory and analyses presented here can provide a basis for longitudinal studies both within and across campuses and may be productively combined with initiatives that involve students in research.