Habitat requirements of the European brown hare (Lepus europaeus PALLAS 1778) in an intensively used agriculture region (Lower Saxony, Germany).

ABSTRACT:

Background

The European brown hare (Lepus europaeus) typically resides in open habitats in agriculturally dominated landscapes in Europe. Over recent decades, a widely observed population decline occurred, which was attributed to agricultural intensification. However, with political incentives for specific crops, especially maize for energy production, the habitat went through massive changes. Thus, there is the need to identify parameters that characterize a suitable habitat for the brown hare in today's agricultural lands.

Results

We modelled European brown hare densities spatially and temporally explicit over 10 years (2005-2014) across an entire federal state. The generalized additive mixed model confirms a constant decline of the European brown hare population in Lower

SUBMITTER: Sliwinski K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6686498 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature