Data from: Burrowing by translocated boodie (Bettongia lesueur) populations alters soils but has limited effects on vegetation

Digging and burrowing mammals modify soil resources, creating shelter for other animals and influencing vegetation and soil biota. The use of conservation translocations to reinstate the ecosystem functions of digging and burrowing mammals is becoming more common. However, in an increasingly altered world, the roles of translocated populations, and their importance for other species, may be different. Boodies (Bettongia lesueur), a commonly translocated species in Australia, construct extensive warrens, but how their warrens affect soil properties and vegetation communities is unknown. We investigated soil properties, vegetation communities, and novel ecosystem elements (specifically non-native flora and fauna) on boodie warrens at three translocation sites widely distributed across the species’ former range. We found that soil moisture and most soil nutrients were higher, and soil compaction was lower, on warrens in all sites and habitat types. In contrast, there were few substantial changes to vegetation species richness, cover, composition or productivity. In one habitat type, the cover of shrubs less than 1 m tall was greater on warrens than control plots. At the two sites where non-native plants were present, their cover was greater, and they were more commonly found on boodie warrens compared to control plots. Fourteen species of native mammals and reptiles were recorded using the warrens, but, where they occurred, the scat of the non-native rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) was also more abundant on the warrens. Together our results suggest that translocated boodie populations may be benefiting both native and non-native flora and fauna. Translocated boodies, through the construction of their warrens, substantially alter the sites where they are released, but this does not always reflect their historic ecosystem roles.

掘穴型哺乳类动物会改变土壤资源，为其他动物构筑庇护所，并对植被与土壤生物群落（soil biota）产生影响。利用迁地保护（conservation translocation）手段恢复掘穴哺乳类的生态系统功能，正变得愈发普遍。然而，在人类活动持续改变的全球环境中，迁地种群所扮演的生态角色，以及它们对其他物种的重要性，或已发生变化。蓬尾袋狸（Boodie，Bettongia lesueur）是澳大利亚常见的迁地保护物种，它们会构筑复杂的洞群系统，但这类洞群如何影响土壤属性与植被群落，目前尚无定论。我们针对该物种历史分布范围内广泛分布的3个迁地保护样地，调查了蓬尾袋狸洞群周边的土壤属性、植被群落，以及新型生态系统组分——具体为外来动植物类群。研究发现，在所有样地与生境类型中，洞群区域的土壤含水量与多数土壤养分含量更高，而土壤紧实度更低。与之形成对比的是，植被的物种丰富度、盖度、群落组成及生产力几乎未出现显著变化。仅在一类生境中，高度低于1米的灌木盖度在洞群区域显著高于对照样地。在存在外来植物的2个样地中，外来植物的盖度更高，且相较于对照样地，它们更常出现在蓬尾袋狸洞群区域。研究共记录到14种利用洞群的本土哺乳类与爬行类动物，但在洞群区域也更易发现外来物种欧洲兔（Oryctolagus cuniculus）的粪便。综上，我们的研究结果表明，迁地保护的蓬尾袋狸种群或同时对本土与外来动植物类群产生益处。通过构筑洞群系统，迁地的蓬尾袋狸种群会显著改变其被释放的生境，但这种改变并不总能契合其历史生态角色。