Ecological drivers of garden dormouse (Eliomys quercinus) occupancy in a human modified landscape in Germany

The garden dormouse (Eliomys quercinus) is an understudied mammal species endemic to Europe. Once distributed widely across the continent, its eastern populations have significantly declined, with the species now found in only 50% of its former range. In Germany, it also occurs in spruce forests in low mountain ranges. However, this habitat has recently been lost due to bark beetle infestation following a prolonged period of drought. In some places, not only are the dead trees removed, but also all the branches and topsoil. 
We assessed habitat requirements of a garden dormouse population in such a changing habitat in the Harz Mountains, Germany. To assess garden dormouse occupancy, we conducted transect surveys using footprint tunnels in July and October 2022 for the presence of garden dormice. Additionally, we measured covariates such as coverage of tree, shrub, and herb layers, as well as deadwood, soil characteristics, and reforestation. Using single-season occupancy modelling,..., , , # Ecological drivers of garden dormouse (Eliomys quercinus) occupancy in a human modified landscape in Germany

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.6t1g1jx94](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.6t1g1jx94)

## Description of the data and file structure

In July 2022, we installed 100 footprint tunnels across 10 transects positioned perpendicularly along a forest road in the western Harz Mountains to detect garden dormouse. Each transect, consisting of 10 footprint tunnels, was established every 200 m, with 5 tunnels on each side of the road. To analyse habitat preferences of the garden dormouse, we collected several environmental parameters at each footprint tunnel location.

### Files and variables

##### **File: occu-data.csv**

**Description:** The data file includes all data collected in the field to analyse garden dormouse habitat preferences. Please note that delimiter is a semicolon (;), and the decimal separator is a comma (,). 

Variables include:

* tunnel.ID (counts tunnel from 1 to 100...