Small mammals can be regarded as excellent subjects to test suppositions about population growth migration and reproduction, and, in particular, on how the complex physical structure of the environment affects the ecology of populations and communities. In other words, these small mammal studies can help formulate landscape ecological principles. This book summarizes a great deal of experimental work on the spatial ecology of small mammals. The field has entered an exciting stage with several new techniques (such as GIS and systems modeling) becoming available. Leading contributors describe and analyze the most well-known case studies and provide new insights into how landscape patterns and processes have had an impact on small mammals and how small mammals have, in turn, affected landscape structure and composition.
