BULLETIN FLORIDA MUSEUM NATURAL HISTORY VOL 38 PT. 11(8)


documented in this study undoubtedly is linked to the diverse plant species
composition in the forests and consequent production of diverse plant products.
 Male and female home range sizes were similar in this study, although
females were slightly larger than males. This contrasts to other studies where male
home range sizes were larger than those of females (Fitch and Rainey 1956; Neal
1967). These results may be influenced by sample size and the high within-sample
variability of the radiotelemetry observations. Contrary to many other mammalian
radiotelemetry studies, male and female home ranges did not overlap in most of the
study sites. The three ranges that did overlap (n=23) were male-female, and may
have been associated with reproductive periods.
 In the analyses of woodrat home ranges according to habitat type, size was on
average smaller in the mesic hardwood and bottomland swamp habitats. In these
areas densities were lowest, although all sites had wide-ranging individuals.
However, this relationship between home range and habitat type was statistically
significant in this study.
 The influence of density on home range size documented by many researchers
can result in a negative correlation between density and home range. Hence, when
densities are low, home ranges frequently increase. That relationship was
documented in this study, where individuals increased home ranges after the
disappearance of other woodrats who had adjacent home ranges.
 Another factor possibly influencing home range size is the complex
horizontal and vertical vegetation structure in the bottomland hardwood swamp
and mesic hammock with open understory habitats (e.g. high stem density coupled
with large crown diameter). This complex vegetation structure may influence
animal home range size due to higher 3-dimensional space use in this study. In
other words, arboreal habitat use increased when woodrat dens were located in
structurally complex vegetation. In contrast, where vegetation structure is less
complex on vertical and horizontal planes, home ranges may be larger due to less
three dimensional space use: animals may be travelling out rather than up in their
movements (Mel Sunquist, pers.comm.). This could contribute to a smaller linear
home range size in less complex habitats.
 The bottomland swamp is also a large contiguous area. The other habitats,
mesic hammock with saw-palmetto understory (MHP) at Ross and Goose lakes and
mesic hardwood forest (MH) at Suggs and Ashley lakes, are narrow strips of mesic
forest ranging from 50 m to 200 meters in width. Based on captured immigrants
and disappearance of radio-collared animals, I suspect woodrats may make large
scale movements. The Mill Creek Swamp populations remained the highest
throughout the study, and the Ross and Suggs lakes populations declined but
rebounded. These two areas are distally connected to Mill Creek Swamp,
facilitating potential animal movements. The Ashley and Goose lakes sites are
farther away and are disjunct from Mill Creek Swamp, potentially causing
difficulties for woodrat dispersal into these areas, and populations disappeared in
these two areas.