Trapping in Arizona
[website under construction]
Robust design: capture-mark recapture
Rucker site:
This is a patchy population scattered around the base of a volcanic cinder cone. The substrate is scoria-based gravel (large particle sizes). Banner-tailed kangaroo rat mounds are found in areas with shorter grass.
Traps:
Long Sherman, modified to accomodate the tail of D. spectabilis without harm.
Mounds:
Each mound is home to a single adult. To increase trapping success, 3 traps are used per residence. Since 2005, many new mounds have been constructed. This level of activity has not been observed since the early 1980s!
Capture:
Kangaroo rats are weighed, sexed, and checked for reproductive status.
Mark:
Each individual receives 2 ear tags with the same 4-digit number.
Genetic sample:
A small sliver of ear skin (pencil-point size) is taken from one ear. This is stored in a cell lysis buffer until DNA is extracted.
Release/Recapture:
Individuals are released at the mound where they were trapped. Some survive to be sampled again, providing information on survivorship between trapping sessions.
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