Effects of Fire on the Small Mammal Component of an Experimental Grassland Community

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Abstract
Fire was applied in late July 1969, to one of two comparable 0.4-ha fenced enclosures, each previously planted in oats (Avena sativa) and stocked with three species of small mammals, house mice (Mus musculus), deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus), and meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus). By late winter both Musand Microtushad disappeared from the burned grid, whereas all three species prevailed in the control grid. Musreached a population density of approximately 120 individuals in the unburned grid during March 1970. Oat seeds helped to account for this population explosion. Microtusfailed to reproduce in both enclosures throughout the study. Peromyscuspopulation density was reduced approximately 50% after fire treatment. There was no evidence that fire directly killed any small mammals.