Factors affecting habitat use by the fox squirrel (Sciurus niger rufiventer) in fragmented habitat of eastern Kansas.

Abstract

I conducted a landscape level investigation of habitat use by the fox squirrel (Sciurus niger ruflventer) in the predominantly agricultural/grassland matrix of eastern Kansas by combining field data with GIS techniques. I searched for leaf nests on two 15.5 km2 study sites containing 130 habitat patches (fragmented woodlots) ranging in size from 0.0 1-12.9 ha. I measured 12 explanatory variables (five isolation variables, two connectivity variables, and five habitat variables) to generate predictive models of habitat use of fox squirrel. I also applied my data to the existing Habitat Suitability Index (HSI) model for fox squirrel to determine if this model predicted fox squirrel habitat use better than my predictive models. Area (F1•129 = 416.5, R2 = 0.7649, P< 0.0001, S2 = 7.53) was selected as the most important indicator of both leaf nest abundance and the presence/absence of leaf nests by using multiple regression and discriminant function analysis. The HSI model was not an accurate predictor of patches occupied by leaf nests. Modifications to the HSI such as adding an Osage orange (Madura pomifera) variable to the winter food component could make the model more representative of fox squirrel habitat in eastern Kansas.